Representatives of around 120 countries have begun signing a treaty banning the production, use or stockpiling of anti-personnel landmines. The first to sign are the hosts, Canada, followed by Norway and South Africa. With so many signatories, the ceremony is expected to stretch late into Thursday afternoon. The Canadian government has pledged more than $60m US to help implement the treaty. Three of the permanent members of the UN Security Council, the United States, Russia and China, won't be signing, but delegates from Washington have stressed their commitment to further efforts in the area of mine clearance. Fergus Nichol reports from Ottawa:

Canada's prime minister, Jean Chretien, said in his speech opening the signing ceremony, that this conference had been convened to bring an end to an epidemic which he described as the sting of death that remains long after the battle grows quiet. The UN secretary-general, Kofi Annan, said it was the weak and vulnerable who had suffered from land mines year in, year out, and it was they and their children who would gain from this treaty.

With every signatory having the chance to make a speech, the signing ceremony is going to be a protracted affair. But the Canadian hosts say that's a measure of the success of this convention.