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The defense ministers of Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia have recommended that their governments withdraw from the UN Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production, and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on Their Destruction, broadly known as the Ottawa Convention. The ministers published a joint statement arguing that the threats to NATO members bordering Russia and Belarus had grown exponentially, thus necessitating such a move:
“We believe that in the current security environment, it is of paramount importance to provide our defense forces with flexibility and freedom of choice of potential use of new weapons systems and solutions to bolster the defense of the Alliance’s vulnerable Eastern Flank.”
The Ottawa Convention banning anti-personnel mines was signed in 1997. It has been joined by 164 countries, which pledged to never use, develop, or produce anti-personnel mines and to destroy all stockpiles of these weapons. Russia never signed the treaty.
Lithuanian Defense Minister Dovilė Šakalienė called the recommendation a “clear message that the states bordering Russia are ready to take all possible measures to ensure the safety of their citizens.” Earlier this month, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk also mentioned the possibility of his country's withdrawal from the convention. Finland has also considered following suit.
The final decision on the withdrawal of Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, and Poland from the convention rests with the countries' parliaments.
The Ottawa Convention banning anti-personnel mines was signed in 1997. It has been joined by 164 countries, which pledged to never use, develop, or produce anti-personnel mines and to destroy all stockpiles of these weapons. Russia never signed the treaty.