Treaty to ban cluster bombs within 8 years

Posted 05 29 2008 4:37AM

DUBLIN, Ireland - Diplomats say more than 100 nations have reached agreement on a treaty that would ban current designs of cluster bombs.

The treaty also would require the destruction of stockpiles within eight years.

The breakthrough Wednesday followed agreement on two key sticking points after 10 days of Dublin negotiations.

However, the discussions in Ireland did not involve the biggest makers and users of cluster bombs: the United States, Russia, China, Israel, India and Pakistan.

The latest draft of the treaty, obtained by The Associated Press, allows countries that outlaw cluster bombs to continue to cooperate militarily with non-signatory nations.

It also leaves open the door for a future generation of smaller cluster bombs that pick targets more precisely and contain self-destruct technology.