Recital (4)

Activities within the lifecycle of AI systems related to the protection of national security interests are excluded from the scope of the Convention. Regulation (EU) 2024/1689, which will be the main Union legal act implementing the Convention, also excludes from its scope of application AI systems placed on the market, put into service, or used with or without modification exclusively for national security purposes, and the output of AI systems used in the Union exclusively for such purposes, regardless of the type of entity carrying out those activities. Furthermore, national security remains the sole responsibility of each Member State, as provided for in Article 4(2) of the Treaty on European Union (TEU). Consequently, the Union position to be expressed in the Conference of the Parties set up by the Convention should respect the boundaries set out above. In particular, the Commission should refrain from discussing or taking any position on activities within the lifecycle of AI systems related to the protection of national security interests in the meetings of the Conference of the Parties.