Conventional weapon

The terms conventional weapons or conventional arms generally refers to weapons that are in relatively wide use and that are not weapons of mass destruction, such as nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons. Conventional weapons include small arms and light weapons, sea and land mines, as well as (non-nuclear) bombs, shells, rockets, missiles and cluster munitions.

The acceptable use of all types of conventional weapons in war time is governed by the Geneva Conventions. Certain types of conventional weapons are also regulated or prohibited under the United Nations Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons. Other are prohibited under the Convention on Cluster Munitions and the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction.