By Carroll Bogert, Associate Director of Human Rights Watch

I have great news to report to all of you who joined us for the adoption of the Cluster Munitions Convention in Dublin last year, or came to the signing ceremony in Oslo in December - and those of you who remember our annual dinner film about the work that Human Rights Watch has done over more than a decade to ban this awful weapon.

Last night, President Obama signed legislation banning the export of any cluster munitions with a "dud rate" of greater than one percent. Only a tiny fraction of the US arsenal can meet that standard, so the ban is nearly comprehensive. The legislation also requires the receiving country to agree that cluster munitions "will not be used where civilians are known to be present." This is now the law of the land - a huge victory for our advocacy!

Senator Patrick J. Leahy of Vermont, chairman of the Appropriations Subcommittee on State and Foreign Operations and a close ally of Human Rights Watch, was the architect of this legislation. Many of you who joined us last month for advocacy meetings on Capitol Hill raised the cluster munitions issue with your congressional interlocutors - thank you! These efforts have really paid off today.

Senators Leahy and Dianne Feinstein, as well as Congressman James McGovern, have also introduced the Cluster Munitions Civilian Protection Act (HR981; S416), which is designed to prohibit the US military from using cluster bombs that do not meet the same standard.

Our work in the United States is not done, of course. We're still calling on President Obama to initiate a thorough review of clusters policy. Our goal remains the US signature of the historic Convention on Cluster Munitions, which 95 countries - including many close US allies - have already signed.

We took a big step today. Many thanks to all of you for your support. We are just thrilled and hope that you are, too.