• .1 at least 26 States have expressed their consent to be bound by this Protocol in accordance with Article 24; and
• .2 at least 15 Contracting Parties to the Convention are included in the number of States referred to in paragraph 1.1.

2 For each State that has expressed its consent to be bound by this Protocol in accordance with Article 24 following date referred to in paragraph 1, this Protocol shall enter into force on the thirtieth day after the date on which such State expressed its consent.

TRANSITIONAL PERIOD

Article XXVI

1 Any State that was not a Contracting Party to the Convention before 31 December 1996 and that expresses its consent to be bound by this Protocol prior to its entry into force or within five years after its entry into force may, at the time it expresses its consent, notify the Secretary-General that, for reasons described in the notification, it will not be able to comply with specific provisions of this Protocol other than those provided in paragraph 2, for a transitional period that shall not exceed that described in paragraph 4.

2 No notification made under paragraph 1 shall affect the oligations of a Contracting Party to this Protocol with respect to incineration at sea or the dumping of radioactive wastes or other radioactive matter.

3 Any Contracting Party to this Protocol that has notified the Secretary-General under paragraph 1 that, for the specified transitional period, it will not be able to comply, in part or in whole, with Article 4.1 or Article 9 shall nonetheless during that period prohibit the dumping of wastes or other matter for which it has not issued a permit, use its best efforts to adopt administrative or legislative measures to ensure that issuance of permits and permit conditions comply with the provisions of Annex 2, and notify the Secretary-General of any permits issued.

4 Any transitional period specified in a notification made under paragraph 1 shall not extend beyond five years after such notification is submitted.

5 Contracting Parties that have made a notification under paragraph 1 shall submit to the first Meeting of Contracting Parties occurring after deposit of their instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession a programme and timetable to achieve full compliance with this Protocol, together with any requests for relevant technical co-operation and assistance in accordance with Article 13 of this Protocol.

6 Contracting Parties that have made a notification under paragraph 1 shall establish procedures and mechanisms for the transitional period to implement and monitor submitted programmes designed to achieve full compliance with this Protocol. A report on progress toward compliance shall be submitted by such Contracting Parties to each Meeting of Contracting Parties held during their transitional period for appropriate action.

WITHDRAWAL

Article XXVII

1 Any Contracting Party may withdraw from this Protocol at any time after the expiry of two years from the date on which this Protocol enters into force for that Contracting Party.

2 Withdrawal shall be effected by the deposit of an instrument of withdrawal with the Secretary-General.

3 A withdrawal shall take effect one year after receipt by the Secretary-General of the instrument of withdrawal or such longer period as may be specified in that instrument.

DEPOSITARY

Article XXVIII

1 This Protocol shall be deposited with the Secretary-General.

2 In addition to the functions specified in Articles 10.5, 16.5, 21.4, 22.5 and 26.5, the Secretary-General shall:

• .1 inform all States which have signed this Protocol or acceded thereto of:
  • .1 each new signature or deposit of an instrument of ratification, acceptance, approval or accession, together with the date thereof;
  • .2 the date of entry into force of this Protocol; and
  • .3 the deposit of any instrument of withdrawal from this Protocol together with the date on which it was received and the date on which the withdrawal takes effect.
• .2 transmit certified copies of this Protocol to all States which have signed this Protocol or acceded thereto.

3 As soon as this Protocol enters into force, a certified true copy thereof shall be transmitted by the Secretary-General to the Secretariat of the United Nations for registration and publication in accordance with Article 102 of the Charter of the United Nations.

By a communication dated 23 November 2011, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland accepted the amendment to article 6 of the Convention and declared that the acceptance extends to the Bailiwick of Guernsey, the Bailiwick of Jersey, Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands, the Falkland Islands (Malvinas), the Isle of Man, Montserrat, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, St. Helena, Ascension and Tristan de Cunha.