Poland to Withdraw From Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Treaty

The Polish Sejm (parliament) voted to exit the Ottawa Treaty banning the use of anti-personnel landmines. 

In Wednesday’s vote, 413 lawmakers voted for, 15 voted against, and three abstained. 

“Poland cannot be placed under any straitjacket that would prevent us from defending our homeland,” said Minister of National Defense Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz, according to the Polish news site RMF24.

The Ottawa Treaty was written in 1997 and bans signatories from acquiring, producing, stockpiling or using anti-personnel mines, which are designed to be buried or hidden on the ground. Poland signed it the same year but only ratified it in 2012. 

Landmines often mutilate victims, who are not immediately killed, and aid groups decry their long-term impact on civilians.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk had proposed exiting the treaty earlier this year in March.

“I will recommend a positive opinion for Poland to withdraw from the Ottawa Convention and possibly from the Dublin Convention,” Tusk told lawmakers, clarifying that he was referring to treaties on “anti-personnel mines and cluster munitions.”

This decision came after a joint declaration from the defense ministers of Poland, Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia, which expressed their intention to withdraw from the treaty.

“In light of these considerations, we – the ministers of defense of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Poland – unanimously recommend withdrawing from the Ottawa Convention. With this decision, we are sending a clear message: Our countries are prepared and can use every necessary measure to defend our territory and freedom,” the ministers wrote. 

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Poland’s decision comes after a recent move in June by Finland and Estonia to withdraw from the Ottawa Treaty over concerns about Russian aggression. 

In April, Latvia also voted to withdraw from the Ottawa Treaty following Lithuania’s withdrawal in March.