Eastern European Countries Withdraw From United Nations Anti-Landmine Treaty

Four Eastern European countries say they wish to withdraw from the Ottawa Treaty on landmines, citing “Russia’s aggression” and “dire security challenges” on NATO’s “vulnerable eastern flank”.

The Defence Ministers of Poland, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania — all post-Soviet NATO members who speak most about feeling vulnerable to Putin’s aggression, given their proximity to Russia’s borders — have advised their governments to withdraw from a key weapons control treaty.

The military leaders say the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction (‘The Ottawa Treaty’) prevents them from taking all options to defend themselves from Russia. Consequently, despite their commitment to “international humanitarian law” and the principles of the treaty, they said now is the time to abandon it.

In the joint letter, the ministers stated, “Since the ratification… the security situation in our region has fundamentally deteriorated” and noted “Russia’s aggression and its ongoing threat” to NATO’s “vulnerable eastern flank”.

The four nations stated they no longer considered having all their weapon options limited by treaty prudent. They stated, “It is of paramount importance to provide our defence forces with flexibility and freedom of choice of potential use of new weapon systems” and that “we are sending a clear message: our countries are prepared and can use every necessary measure to defend our territory and freedom.”

The impending withdrawal and broader attitudes of adherence to the treaty underline key issues of international law, which is that nations respect the treaty when it suits them and spurn it when it doesn’t.

The most powerful nations never complied with it in the first place — the United States, China, and Russia were never signatories — and there is no world police or space court to enforce it anyway.

Russia has used antipersonnel landmines extensively during its invasion of Ukraine, and while the United States initially resisted supplying the controversial weapons to Ukraine as part of its support packages, it later relented.

The Biden White House cited Russia switching to dismounted tactics of pushing forward with infantry to justify its policy change, which came just days after Trump won the 2024 election and despite Ukraine being an Ottawa treaty signatory.