Poland and the Baltic countries have announced plans to withdraw from major international treaties banning anti-personnel lands, citing the growing threat from Russia.
In a joint statement, the defense ministers of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland said that since signing the Ottawa Convention, threats from Moscow and its allies have “a significant increase.”
To protect the east side of NATO, giving their troops “flexibility and freedom of choice” is “first priority,” they said.
The Ottawa Treaty, also known as the Treaty of Prohibiting Mines, came into effect in 1997. It aims to ban anti-personnel mines around the world and has been signed in over 160 countries.
However, some major military forces, including China, India, Russia, Pakistan and the United States, did not sign the treaty.
All the Baltic countries had signed the treaty by 2005, but Poland did the same in 2012.
However, in a joint statement on Tuesday, the Minister of Defense said the security situation in the region has “significantly worsened” since the treaty was signed.
“In light of these considerations, we … encourage them to withdraw from the Ottawa Treaty unanimously.
“This decision has sent us a clear message. Our country is prepared and we can use all necessary measures to protect our territory and freedom,” the Minister of Defense wrote.
However, they stressed that despite plans to leave the treaty, Poland and the Baltic States are still committed to international humanitarian law “including the protection of civilians in armed conflicts.”
“Our country will continue to support these principles while addressing our security needs,” they wrote.
All four countries are in the NATO Alliance, all four share a border with Russia.
Since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, the Baltic Sea and Poland have significantly increased military spending, bringing great support for Ukraine.
According to the Kiel Institute think tank, in terms of GDP, the Baltic States and Poland are the best donors of aid to Ukraine.
Although Ukraine is a signatory to the Ottawa Treaty, it received land mines from the United States during a full-scale Russian invasion, and in the past it has told the United Nations that it cannot guarantee that it will protect the treaty due to Russian invasion.
However, Article 20 of the treaty specifically states that if a state is currently in war, it cannot withdraw from the treaty.
The United Nations estimates that Ukraine is currently the most mined country in the world.
