Tokyo ? The government has decided it likely will approve a treaty to impose limited controls on the use of cluster bombs in anticipation of a working session of an international panel this week to deal with the controversial issue.

However, Japan opposes a complete ban on the munitions.

The policy was developed ahead of a meeting on the Convention on Prohibitions or Restrictions on Certain Conventional Weapons (CCW), which will begin Tuesday in Geneva. Representatives from participating countries are hoping to establish a new treaty controlling the weapon’s use.

On the understanding that Japan is against the immediate and complete abolition of the bombs, the government’s policy is to back a ban on the use of the bombs in densely populated areas, as well as the ban on the use of types of cluster bombs that tend to remain unexploded. However, the policy says, the government approves of using cluster bombs with a function that keeps unexploded submunitions from detonating.