Eastern European Defence Ministers press for withdrawal from Mine Ban Treaty

In recent statements, the Defense Ministers of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland proposed that their countries withdraw from the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention, better known as the Ottawa Convention, due to Russia’s perceived threat to bordering NATO members and the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict. The Ottawa Convention has come under repeated pressure during the Russia-Ukraine conflict, with neighbouring countries taking successive steps to increase security and military preparedness. In early March, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced that the country would take the first steps towards withdrawing from the treaty. The Estonian and Latvian defence ministers and chiefs of defence staff were more cautious, saying that any decision to withdraw from the Ottawa Treaty should be taken in consultation with their neighbours. Finland, the last EU state to sign the Ottawa Convention in 2012, is also considering leaving the treaty, according to Defence Minister Antti Hakkanen.