Lithuanian Defence Minister Dovile Sakaliene says she will have “very positive news” soon on withdrawing from the Ottawa Convention banning anti-personnel mines.
“I have no doubt we will have very positive news very soon, not in a month and not even in a week,” the minister told BNS by phone from Poland on March 12 night.
“We had an online conversation between the Baltic and Polish ministers. I will also be meeting with the Polish minister in Poland, and we will have a conversation about how we can speed up joint solutions for the whole region,” she added.
Lithuania is considering withdrawing from the Ottawa Convention to strengthen its border with Russia in case of possible aggression. Critics of such a decision say, however, that anti-personnel mines could harm defending forces and civilians.
Lithuania’s Chief of Defence General Raimundas Vaiksnoras has said that withdrawing from the Ottawa Convention would untie the military’s hands.
All European Union countries are members of the Ottawa Convention, while China, Russia, the US, India and Pakistan are not.
The Lithuanian Seimas’ decision made last July to withdraw from another convention banning the acquisition or possession of cluster munitions came into force last week. (LRT)