Baltic states and Poland recommend withdrawal from anti-landmine treaty

Poland and the three Baltic states of Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia want to withdraw from the international treaty banning the use of anti-personnel mines. The four NATO countries say it is necessary to be able to mount an optimal defence against the growing threat of Russian aggression.

"The military threat to NATO members bordering Russia and Belarus has increased significantly," the countries said in a joint statement. This decision sends a clear message: our countries are prepared and will use all possible means to ensure our security.

The move is one of the latest signs of concern among Nato states bordering Russia about how to defend themselves against their eastern neighbour after its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

In the 1997 Ottawa Treaty, countries agreed to ban anti-personnel landmines. The use of landmines is controversial because they are difficult and dangerous to clear in peacetime, and they often continue to kill innocent people years later. 160 countries have now signed up to the ban, although this does not include superpowers and major arms manufacturers such as the US, China and Russia.

Source: commonspace.eu with agencies
Photo: Polish soldiers install barbed wire along the Polish border with the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad, near the village of Szyliny, northeastern Poland, 16 November 2022. EPA.

Related articles

Editor's choice
News
Borrell tells the European Parliament that the situation in Afghanistan was critical, but the EU will remain engaged

Borrell tells the European Parliament that the situation in Afghanistan was critical, but the EU will remain engaged

Borrell underlined that the European Union will make every effort to support the peace process and to remain a committed partner to the Afghan people. "Of course, we will have to take into account the evolving situation, but disengagement is not an option.  We are clear on that: there is no alternative to a negotiated political settlement, through inclusive peace talks.
Editor's choice
News
Israel and Hamas agree ceasefire in first phase of Trump’s peace plan

Israel and Hamas agree ceasefire in first phase of Trump’s peace plan

Israel and Hamas agreed to pause fighting in Gaza to free the remaining hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, accepting elements of a plan put forward by the Trump administration that Palestinians greeted reluctantly on Thursday 9 October as a possible breakthrough toward ending the devastating two-year-old war. Under the terms, Hamas intends to release all 20 living hostages in a matter of days, while the Israeli military will begin a withdrawal from the majority of Gaza, people familiar with the matter told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity to discuss details of an agreement that has not fully been made public.

Popular

Editor's choice
News
Israel and Hamas agree ceasefire in first phase of Trump’s peace plan

Israel and Hamas agree ceasefire in first phase of Trump’s peace plan

Israel and Hamas agreed to pause fighting in Gaza to free the remaining hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, accepting elements of a plan put forward by the Trump administration that Palestinians greeted reluctantly on Thursday 9 October as a possible breakthrough toward ending the devastating two-year-old war. Under the terms, Hamas intends to release all 20 living hostages in a matter of days, while the Israeli military will begin a withdrawal from the majority of Gaza, people familiar with the matter told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity to discuss details of an agreement that has not fully been made public.