Madam Coordinator,
In order to make a practical contribution to this debate, the Cuban delegation has identified several current challenges for International Humanitarian Law (IHL) that we consider particularly relevant in the context of protecting civil infrastructure.
For each of the identified challenges, we provide practical recommendations, which we hope will be reflected in the outcome document of the High-Level Conference scheduled for 2026, as part of the Global Initiative to support IHL.
- Challenge: In modern conflicts, violations of the principles of Distinction, Proportionality and Precaution established in the Geneva Conventions are increasingly flagrant.
Recommendation: Reaffirm the importance of strictly adhering to the principles of Distinction, Proportionality, and Precaution. Emphasize that these principles are complementary, and for a military operation to be lawful, all three must be respected.
Recommendation: Highlight the obligation to respect and protect, in all circumstances, healthcare facilities, health personnel, and medical transport vehicles, as well as essential services for the survival of the civilian population, such as food and drinking water supply facilities and structures containing dangerous forces, such as dams and nuclear plants.
- Challenge: Ambiguities in current IHL regulations. Several elements need greater precision to ensure effective IHL practical implementation. For example, regarding dual-use infrastructure, clear criteria are lacking to determine when a civilian asset becomes a military target, leading to ambiguous interpretations.
Recommendation: Identify IHL provisions that require further clarification and better-defined criteria, with a view to working toward consensus-based refinements.
- Challenge: Insufficient national measures to ensure the protection of civil infrastructure in armed conflicts.
Recommendation: Strengthen national legislation and regulations by States to align them with IHL provisions and incorporate specific provisions on the protection of critical infrastructure.
Cuba has incorporated IHL principles into its legislation. The Constitution of the Republic includes principles and rules related to International Humanitarian Law.
A new Criminal Code was recently approved, in which crimes against International Humanitarian Law were incorporated, with the purpose of recognizing the transgressions foreseen therein as criminal offenses.
- Challenge: Inadequate training of armed forces and relevant actors in the implementation of IHL.
Recommendation: Conduct education and awareness campaigns on the importance of protecting civilian property.
The Cuban Red Cross provides a range of courses on International Humanitarian Law through its national, provincial, and municipal branches. Additionally, it has developed several academic programs on the subject, making education on IHL accessible across the country.
The National Union of Cuban Jurists hosts annual provincial and national events dedicated to this subject, notably the International Summer School in Havana, which focuses on Public International Law and International Humanitarian Law.
The study of International Humanitarian Law has been incorporated into military training programs to ensure its dissemination among the armed forces.
International Humanitarian Law has been integrated into military training programs, ensuring that members of the armed forces receive thorough instruction on this topic.
Order No. 150, issued by the Chief of the General Staff of the Revolutionary Armed Forces, requires that all personnel engaged in national defense receive instruction in the Law of War.
Since 2016, Cuba has organized International Seminars on the application and evolution of International Humanitarian Law, convening officers and officials from Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Ecuador, and Bolivia.
- Challenge: Increasing urban conflicts. As the world continues to urbanize, conflicts are increasingly taking place in cities, posing serious concerns for civilian lives, infrastructure, and essential services. Urban settings feature the coexistence of civilians and combatants, the proximity of civilian assets and military targets, and a complex network of interconnected urban infrastructure serving both civilian and military purposes. For example, a power plant can supply electricity both to a military barracks and to the rest of the city.
Many parties to conflicts have not adapted their choice of weaponry to the specific vulnerabilities of people and civil infrastructure in urban environments.
The use of explosive weapons in populated areas destroys vital civilian infrastructure such as hospitals, schools, and energy and water systems, exacerbating civilian suffering by disrupting essential services. Additionally, urban combat leads to widespread displacement.
Recommendation: Advocate for the prohibition of large-scale explosive weapons in populated areas.
- Challenge: New means of warfare and the ways in which they are employed pose significant new challenges and risks for the implementation of International Humanitarian Law.
Many States are heavily investing in the development of new means of warfare, including cyber tools and increasingly autonomous weapon systems.
Cyber Operations: These pose threats and new challenges, as they can inflict grave harm on civilian populations by targeting critical civil infrastructure, including power plants, water supply systems, and waste management facilities.
Attributing responsibility for such attacks is highly challenging. The belief that accountability can be easily evaded may encourage more actors to carry out these attacks in violation of International Humanitarian Law without hesitation.
Recommendation: Initiate discussions at the UN General Assembly to establish an effective regulatory framework prohibiting cyber tools for non-peaceful purposes.
Autonomous Weapons: Autonomous weapon systems operate differently from other weapon systems, in which the user chooses the timing, location, and target of an attack at the point of launch or activation.
Autonomous systems activate and initiate attacks in response to its environment, based on generalized targeting profiles. Due to the autonomy of their critical functions, human control over the use of force is lost.
Cuba believes autonomous weapon systems are incompatible with the principles of distinction, proportionality, and precaution established in IHL.
Accepting autonomous weapons without regulation or prohibition would mean accepting the boundless dehumanization of armed conflicts. Machines cannot replace humans in the most critical decisions of war.
Recommendation: Adopt a legally binding international instrument prohibiting the manufacture, possession, and use of fully autonomous weapons and establishing specific regulations for the use of semi-autonomous weapons. This instrument could take the form of an additional protocol to the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons or a separate convention or treaty negotiated and agreed upon within the UN General Assembly framework.
- Challenge: Increasing difficulties in ensuring that conflicting parties engage in dialogue regarding their IHL responsibilities. One reason –the proliferation of new actors in conflicts- makes it harder to hold them accountable for violations of the rules and implement corrective measures.
Private military companies are increasingly involved in conflicts, often engaging in operations that violate IHL. Some States use these companies to evade responsibility under IHL and operate without accountability.
There is an urgent need to regulate these military companies, which cannot continue to operate with impunity and without accountability. It is necessary to move beyond voluntary guidelines and best practices. Existing non-binding frameworks, such as the Montreux Document, are entirely insufficient.
Recommendation: Conclude negotiations and urgently adopt a robust, legally binding international instrument to regulate, monitor, and oversee private military and security companies. Such a new instrument will strengthen existing international law, including International Humanitarian Law.