Canadian officials hosting a three-day landmine conference in Ottawa say around 120 countries will sign a treaty banning the production, use or stockpiling of anti-personnel landmines.

Russia is expected not to sign, alongside the United States, China and several Middle Eastern nations.

The Russian decision was described as "unfortunate" by the UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan, who is in Ottawa.

Kofi Annan - significant and unfortunate that Russia, the US and China will not sign treaty

Speaking after a meeting with the Canadian Prime Minister, Jean Chretien, Mr Annan said it was significant and unfortunate that three of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council would not be signing the landmine treaty.

But he said that with such huge grassroots support for a ban he hoped they would not stay outside the process for long.

Senior Russian officials have made it clear that Moscow will not sign the treaty, finally ending weeks of confusion. But President Yeltsin has decreed a further five year moratorium on landmine exports.

The Canadian conference hosts are putting on a brave face, despite a considerable array of big name non-signatories.

As well as the United States, Russia and China, they include India, Pakistan, Israel and several Arab states.

These South African mines were destroyed - the process there will continue

But Mr Chretien, in his keynote speech to launch the signing ceremony, is expected to celebrate that as many as 120 countries have come on board, while expressing optimism that further effort will in time mean a truly universal landmine ban.

Amidst the jubilation of officials that so much has been achieved in such a short time, there are few dissenting voices in Ottawa, but some on the fringes of the conference are warning that the ban will be extremely difficult to police.

They are also concerned that the high-profile pro-ban lobby is distracting attention away from urgently needed efforts to get existing mines out of the ground.

Britain is expected to signal a tough approach to those countries which refuse to sign up to the treaty.

Britain's International Development Secretary, Clare Short, will outline the UK's policy when she signs the treaty. She is expected to propose that aid for mine clearance programmes should be conditional on governments' willingness to join the ban.

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