(e) In accordance with States’ obligations under international law, in the study, development, acquisition, or adoption of a new weapon, means or method of warfare, determination must be made whether its employment would, in some or all circumstances, be prohibited by international law[.]
The Netherlands is a State Party to Additional Protocol I of the Geneva Conventions (AP I) and has a standing legal review process for all new weapons, means and methods of warfare as well as for all modifications to existing weapons, means and methods of warfare already in use by the Netherlands armed forces. These legal reviews, in line with article 36 of AP I, are a legal obligation for the 174 States Party to AP I and provide a sufficient framework to determine whether a new weapons system, means or method of warfare can be used in compliance with international law. The low number of States that conduct legal weapons reviews is a concern and the Netherlands is of the view that increasing the number of States that fulfil their existing legal obligations in this context would be an important step in operationalizing this guiding principle.
Although the Netherlands recognizes that not all information gathered under the review procedure is suitable to be shared amongst international partners – i.a. for reasons of national security – the Netherlands is of the view that sharing information regarding the modus operandi and underlying principles of national Article 36 API procedures would be of added value.
