Poland, Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania Plan Withdrawal From Landmine Treaty

The quad of NATO states have said that the threat posed by Russia has forced them to reassess their view on the use of the weapons.

Ukrainian mine experts scan for unexploded ordnance and landmines by the main road to Kherson, Ukraine, on Nov. 16, 2022. Murad Sezer/Reuters

Poland and the Baltic states of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia are planning to withdraw from the international convention banning landmines, the four countries announced on Tuesday.

The quartet of nations on NATO’s eastern flank cited the threat from Russia as the reason for withdrawing from the treaty, which was signed in the Canadian capital of Ottawa in 1997 and came into force in 1999.