Five Nato countries neighbouring Russia or its ally, Belarus, have announced that they are to opt out of the Ottawa treaty of 1997. This treaty bans the use by signatories of anti-personnel (AP) landmines. These states – Poland, Finland, Lithuania,
Estonia and Latvia – now have plans to create a 2,000-mile stretch of mined areas as part of a defensive effort against any possible attack from Russia. The move to create such minefields comes as the result of both a recognition of the perceived growing threat from Russia and of the important defensive effect – as proved during the current Ukraine war – that both AP and anti-tank (AT) landmines can generate.
Read more…
Source: The Conversation News
Sign up for the Counter-IED Report Newsletters
The latest news and insights delivered right to your inbox
Related:
- Russian sappers conducting demining operations in 36 settlements in Kursk Region
March 18, 2025
Sappers are conducting demining operations in 36 liberated settlements within the Kursk Region. Currently, approximately 19,000 hectares of land, over 370 kilometers of roads, and more than 6,700 buildings and structures have been cleared of explosives, according to Alexander Khinshtein, the region’s deputy governor. “The sappers have already commenced their work in 36 communities. So far, ...
- EU, others pledge more than $6bn to Syria in post-al-Assad donor drive
March 17, 2025
The European Union has hosted a donor drive for Syria to encourage a peaceful transition following the ousting of former leader Bashar al-Assad. Western and regional powers participated in Monday’s one-day meeting in Brussels, chaired by EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas. Among all donors, the EU reported that 5.8 billion euros ($6.3bn) was pledged in ...
- Northern Ireland: Explosive device fragments can cause death, bomb trial told
March 14, 2025
Fragments from explosive devices can result in serious injuries or fatalities, the trial of a man accused of the attempted murder of two police officers has been told. Charlie Love, 30, of Bridge Street, Strabane, is accused over a bomb attack targeting a police car at Mount Carmel Heights in the County Tyrone town on ...
- Austria to allocate millions of euros to Ukraine for mine clearance and grain delivery
March 14, 2025
Vienna will allocate €5 million to Ukraine for mine clearance efforts and €2 million for grain delivery following a visit by Austria’s Foreign Minister Beate Meinl-Reisinger to Kyiv on Friday 14 March. Meinl-Reisinger is reported to have arrived on a visit to Ukraine on 14 March. She announced that Austria will allocate €5 million to assist ...
- Isle of Wight: Man and teen arrested after ‘explosive’ found
March 13, 2025
A man and a teenager arrested after a suspected explosive object was discovered at an Isle of Wight address, have been bailed by the police. Officers were called to an address in Cockleton Lane, Gurnard, at 5.30pm on Tuesday (March 11). It followed concerns about an object that had been found. “Specialist officers subsequently attended and ...
- UK: Families evacuated as WWII bomb found in garden
March 13, 2025
Residents have been evacuated from their homes after a suspected WWII bomb was found. Kent Police were contacted at 09.18GMT on Thursday following the discovery in a garden on Kirby Road, Dartford. Officers, along with a Ministry of Defence bomb disposal team, are currently at the scene and a cordon is in place. A spokesperson for ...
- European Defence Agency conducts first CBRN live agent training
March 13, 2025
The European Defence Agency (EDA) has conducted its first-ever chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) live agent training for specialised defence units. Hosted at the CBRN Test and Training Centre in Zemianske Kostoľany, Slovakia, the training took place from 2 to 7 March 2025, with participants from eight EU Member States facing scenarios on qualified ...
- Swiss man arrested over Geneva parcel bomb attacks
March 12, 2025
A 61-year-old Swiss man was arrested in Geneva on Wednesday morning in connection with the parcel bomb incidents. The arrest was part of a major police operation led by the Federal Office of Police (Fedpol) and the cantonal police, according to a press release from the Office of the Attorney General (OAG). “The man is strongly ...
- Ukraine agrees to proposal for ceasefire with Russia as US restores aid and intel sharing
March 11, 2025
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Tuesday that Ukraine had accepted a 30-day ceasefire proposed by the United States, following critical peace talks between US and Ukrainian officials in Saudi Arabia. The ceasefire proposal accepted by Ukraine covers the entire front line of the fighting with Russia, not just the air and sea, Zelensky said after the ...
- UK: Discovery of World War Two bomb sparks street lockdown in Renfrew
March 11, 2025
The discovery of a Second World War bomb sparked the lockdown of a street in Renfrew on Tuesday afternoon. The Royal Navy’s explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) unit was called to an industrial premises on Meadowside Street at around 12.25pm. A cordon was erected around the area, closing off a nearby cycle path. The wartime munitions have ...
- Ukraine: At least one person killed in explosions near railway station in Frankivsk
March 11, 2025
According to the police of Ivano-Frankivsk region, 2 explosions occurred in the city near apartment buildings on Pryvokzalna Street. Three people were injured. The explosions were reported around 18:30. Ukrzaliznytsia reported that “the explosions in Ivano-Frankivsk, which were reported by Telegram channels, occurred outside the station. The sound of the explosion was only heard at the ...
- France: ‘Really huge’ unexploded WWII bomb found outside Paris halts Eurostar travel
March 7, 2025
Eurostar trains to London and all trains heading to northern France were brought to a halt Friday following the discovery of an unexploded World War II-era bomb on tracks leading to the nation’s busiest station. Paris police said that at 4 a.m. Friday morning, a WW2 bomb was discovered by workers along railway tracks in Saint ...
- UK: Man jailed after police find gunpowder and IED at Yorkshire property
March 5, 2025
West Yorkshire Police executed a warrant at a property connected to Paul Bruveris in Illingworth, where they discovered chemicals, explosives and electrical materials Bruveris was arrested when police attended his home address in Dene View, Luddenfoot, in December 2023. The 47-year-old was later charged with; possession of explosive substance for unlawful purpose (gunpowder); possession of explosive ...
- Europe faces return of landmines as defence against Putin
March 5, 2025
Britain and its European allies must urgently regain the ability to deploy landmines if they are to be able to counter the “terrifying” threat posed by Russia, experts have warned. Finland, a new member of Nato in the wake of the Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine, announced in December that it was considering pulling out of the ...
- Lithuania’s departure from the Convention on Cluster Munition creates dangers for its population and global norms
March 5, 2025
Lithuania will formally withdraw from the Convention on Cluster Munitions, an unprecedented move with potentially profound consequences for the protection of civilians in Lithuania and elsewhere. This date ends the convention’s required six-month delay after Lithuania submitted its official intent to withdraw document in September 2024. Lithuania’s decision was designed to address its population’s understandably heightened ...