OneWorld.net (U.S.)

WASHINGTON, D.C., Aug 3 (OneWorld) - The United States looks set to resume making landmines after nearly a decade-long halt in the manufacture of the explosive munitions, a leading rights watchdog said Wednesday.

The United States has not made antipersonnel mines since 1997 but is expected to decide in December whether to embark on production of a new mine called Spider, said Human Rights Watch (HRW).

Additionally, the Pentagon has asked for $1.3 billion to develop and produce a new antipersonnel mine, called the Intelligent Munitions System, the rights group said. A decision on whether to proceed with full production is expected by 2008.

HRW, citing a media report it said the Defense Department had yet to confirm or deny, said that in May 2005, the U.S. Army was to begin deploying to Iraq a new remote-controlled landmine system, Matrix, which relies on technology developed for Spider.

The group, in a report, said these developments were the result of a landmine policy announced by the administration of President George W. Bush in February 2004. Under this policy, Washington has abandoned its long-held objective of joining the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty, which prohibits the use, production, trade, or stockpiling of antipersonnel mines.

''We are beginning to see the bitter fruit of the new Bush administration landmine policy,'' said Steve Goose, director of Human Rights Watch's arms division. ''The U.S. appears well on the way to resuming production of antipersonnel mines. Renewed export and renewed use of these inhumane weapons may not be far behind.''

''Any future production, trade, or use of antipersonnel mines would put the United States squarely at odds with the emerging international consensus against the weapon, and would draw strong criticism from its closest allies,'' Goose added.

The United States has not exported antipersonnel mines since 1992 and has not used them since the 1991 Gulf War, HRW said.

In all, 145 countries have joined the Mine Ban Treaty and another eight have signed but not yet ratified the pact. Participants include every member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Japan, Australia, and other key U.S. military allies.

''With very few exceptions, nearly every nation has endorsed the goal of a global ban on all antipersonnel mines at some point in the future. Even many states not party to the Mine Ban Treaty have stopped production, trade, and use of the weapon,'' HRW said.

Countries that have singed on to the 1997 treaty would have to take steps to ensure they do not in any way assist in the development, manufacture, or sale of U.S. mines, HRW said. Efforts to comply might include pulling out of any investments in U.S. companies producing or exporting the new antipersonnel mines, it added.

The watchdog also said it feared that a U.S. proposal for an international prohibition against exporting landmines that do not self-destruct will pave the way for renewed U.S. exports of antipersonnel mines that do self-destruct.

Self-destructing landmines, also known as smart mines and programmed to explode after a given time if they have not already been triggered by a footfall or other human contact, were developed in part to answer critics' claims that traditional mines could remain unexploded and therefore potentially fatal to civilians or livestock for decades after being sown.

HRW, however, said the programmable mines also were deadly; were almost guaranteed to explode even if never disturbed by a human; and possessed ''humanitarian allure'' that, despite being false in the organization's view, could undermine an outright ban against mines.

U.S. officials have said that American-made mines were not a significant part of the global landmine problem and HRW expected this argument would form part of any decision to renew production.

However, the organization said in its report, the United States exported more than 5.6 million antipersonnel mines to 38 countries between 1969 and 1992.

HRW urged the White House to reverse its decision not to join the Mine Ban Treaty. It recommended an immediate halt to research and development on or production of victim-activated mines.

Funding for new mines should be made only on condition that the new weapons comply with the Mine Ban Treaty, which provides for certain tightly defined exemptions, it added.

HRW further urged the Defense Department to publicly clarify whether the Matrix mine system has already been deployed, and if it is capable of being victim-activated. The Pentagon also should provide details on target identification and the protections afforded civilians in areas where Matrix mines are used, it said.

The watchdog also urged a raft of Pentagon disclosures regarding these and older mines, annual reports to congressional overseers, and a permanent moratorium on U.S. mine exports.