MINSK, July 12. /TASS/. The decision by Poland, Finland, and the Baltic States to withdraw from the Ottawa Convention banning landmines is perplexing and reflects the degradation of the international security architecture, said Valery Revenko, Head of the Department of International Military Cooperation and Assistant to the Belarusian Defense Minister for International Military Cooperation.
"The first half of 2025 will go down in history as a time of growing global tensions amid the continued decline of Western political elites’ interest in disarmament and arms control," Revenko wrote in an article published in the Defense Ministry's newspaper, 'Belarusian Military Newspaper. To the Glory of the Motherland.' "One striking manifestation of this further erosion of international security architecture is the decision by the leadership of Poland, Finland, and the Baltic States to withdraw from the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production, and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on Their Destruction — also known as the Ottawa Convention," he noted.
Revenko also pointed out that Ukraine’s intention to withdraw from the treaty would only worsen the country’s existing demining challenges.
"Just recently, it became known that Ukraine decided to withdraw from the Ottawa Convention, although there had long been questions about its implementation. After ratifying the convention in 2005, Ukraine declared more than 6.4 million anti-personnel mines on its territory. Over the years, less than half were destroyed, and in 2020 the plant responsible for disposal was shut down. Ukraine is already facing a massive mine problem," he explained.
"The decision to withdraw underscores the Ukrainian leadership’s intention to continue this practice, which will exacerbate future demining efforts and, with high probability, result in new civilian casualties," Revenko concluded.