NAIROBI, Nov. 29 (Xinhuanet)-- The United States announced here Monday that it will eliminate its non-detectable landmines by the end of this year.

    In a statement issued at the ongoing Nairobi Summit on a Mine-Free World, The US government said "The United States is setting an example among the major military powers by being the first to ban all of its persistent landmines -- both anti-personnel and anti-vehicle."

    The US government said that it would make all its landmines detectable and scrap those not timed to self-destruct.

    Meanwhile, the US pledged to be "a strong partner" in trying toprevent humanitarian tragedies caused by landmines in the world.

    The summit, held in Kenya's capital Nairobi on Nov. 29 -Dec. 3,will see the first review conference of the milestone Ottawa Convention and the most significant event of the treaty since its signing in 1997.

    The Ottawa Convention, officially known as the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction, was signed in 1997 and entered into force in 1999.

    The United States is one of 42 countries in the world that havenot signed the convention before this summit.

    Africa is the world's most mine-affected region and many saw itas fitting that the First Review Conference of the Ottawa Convention is being held in Africa.

    Jointly organized by the Unite Nations, International Campaign to Ban Landmines and Kenyan Coalition Against Landmines, the Nairobi Summit has brought together senior government officials of143 countries across the world.

    During the conference, participants will review the progress ofthe efforts made in ridding the world of landmines, and produce a concrete action plan for the next five years. Enditem