The Seimas of Lithuania has decided to denounce the Ottawa Convention on the Prohibition of Anti-Personnel Mines. This was reported by Delfi, reports UNN.
Details
107 deputies voted for the rejection of obligations under the document, with 3 abstentions, and no one voted against. For Lithuania's complete withdrawal from the convention, the approval of at least 85 parliamentarians was required.
Withdrawal from the Ottawa Convention will take effect six months after the decision is made by the Lithuanian Parliament. According to the Lithuanian Ministry of Defense, the country's withdrawal from the agreement will deter Russia from a possible invasion, and will also allow the Lithuanian military to enhance the counter-mobility effect on the battlefield.
Context
Lithuania ratified the Ottawa Convention back in 2003. The document was adopted in 1997 and entered into force two years later: it prohibits the use, production, stockpiling and transfer of anti-personnel mines.
Among the countries that have not signed the convention are the USA, Russia, China, North and South Korea, India, Israel, Pakistan, Iran, as well as a number of states in Central Asia and the Middle East.
Recall
Conservative politicians in Lithuania have proposed to build a high-tech line of defense on the border with Russia and Belarus, designed to protect the state from a possible invasion.