On 3 December 1997, in Ottawa, the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction was opened for signature. Article 15: done at Oslo, Norway, on 18 September 1997; open for signature at Ottawa by all States from 3 December 1997 until 4 December 1997, and at United Nations Headquarters in New York from 5 December 1997 until its entry into force. Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish, equally authentic. Depositary: the Secretary-General of the United Nations. Article 17: it enters into force on the first day of the sixth month after the month in which the 40th instrument is deposited. Entry into force: 1 March 1999. Registration with the United Nations No. 35597, the same day (UNTS vol. 2056). Article 19: the Articles shall not be subject to reservations. Article 20: unlimited duration; withdrawal takes effect six months after receipt, or, if the withdrawing State Party is engaged in an armed conflict, not before the end of that conflict.

Article 1: never under any circumstances to use anti-personnel mines; to develop, produce, otherwise acquire, stockpile, retain or transfer them, directly or indirectly; or to assist, encourage or induce anyone to engage in a prohibited activity. Each State Party undertakes to destroy or ensure the destruction of all anti-personnel mines in accordance with the Convention. Article 2: an anti-personnel mine is a mine designed to be exploded by the presence, proximity or contact of a person. Mines designed to be detonated by a vehicle, that are equipped with anti-handling devices, are not considered anti-personnel mines as a result of being so equipped. Transfer includes physical movement and title, but not territory containing emplaced mines.

Article 3: retention or transfer of a number of anti-personnel mines is permitted for the development of and training in detection, clearance or destruction techniques; the amount shall not exceed the minimum number absolutely necessary. Transfer for destruction is permitted. Article 4: stockpiles as soon as possible but not later than four years after entry into force for that State Party. Article 5: mined areas as soon as possible but not later than ten years; perimeter-marked, monitored and protected by fencing or other means until destruction, at least to the standard of the Protocol on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Mines, Booby-Traps and Other Devices, as amended on 3 May 1996. An extension of up to ten years may be granted by a majority of States Parties present and voting at a Meeting of the States Parties or a Review Conference.

Article 6: the right to seek and receive assistance, where feasible; no undue restrictions on mine clearance equipment; assistance, where a State Party is in a position to do so, for victims, mine awareness, clearance and stockpile destruction. Article 7: a report to the Secretary-General as soon as practicable and not later than 180 days, then annually not later than 30 April. Article 8: a Request for Clarification through the Secretary-General, answered within 28 days; a fact-finding mission of up to nine experts. Article 9: national legal, administrative and other measures, including penal sanctions. Article 11: the First Meeting of the States Parties within one year of entry into force. Article 12: a Review Conference five years after entry into force.

Article 16: ratification, acceptance or approval by Signatories; accession by any State which has not signed. Article 18: a State may declare that it will apply provisionally Article 1(1) pending entry into force. The United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs records that 122 States signed in Ottawa.

Centre Block, Parliament Hill, Ottawa. The city where the Convention was opened for signature, not the signing hall. Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

For context: Ottawa Treaty. The text: Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention, Convention Text.