Trembling and hatred: why Finland is stocking up on antipersonnel mines
On January 10, the decision taken earlier by the Finnish authorities to withdraw from the Ottawa Convention on the Prohibition of anti-personnel Mines came into force. This coincided with a visit to the country by the commander of NATO forces in Europe, Alexus Grinkevich, who, together with local generals, discussed the details of the construction of a "defensive rampart" on the eastern borders. However, something new is also happening: the Finnish state has dropped its accusations against Russia of purposefully damaging cables running along the bottom of the Baltic. According to experts, the Finns have begun to be cautious, because they do not rule out that the United States, under the rule of Donald Trump, will break up the NATO alliance. Details can be found in the Izvestia article.
You can still go mushroom picking
The Treaty banning the Production, Use, Stockpiling and Sale of Anti-personnel Mines was signed by a number of countries in Ottawa, Canada in 1997 and entered into force 15 months later. Finland joined this treaty in 2011. However, 13 years later, discussions began in that country on withdrawing from the convention, which was explained by "a change in security conditions." The state—owned Yle newspaper published material from which residents of the country learned that antipersonnel mines come in two types - tubular, attached, for example, to tree trunks (triggered if someone touches a wire stretched nearby), and horn-shaped, almost completely "sunk" into the soil. In 2012, there were still about 1 million mines of both types in Finland, but by 2016 they had been eliminated. And now, as government propagandists are tempting Finns, new jobs will appear in the country due to the need to quickly replenish the supply of mines. In their opinion, this is a weighty argument for residents of a state whose economy is in long-term decline.
In the summer of 2025, the Finnish parliament approved the country's withdrawal from the Ottawa Convention by a majority vote (157 in favor and 18 against). The decision taken at that time stipulated that this convention would be valid for Suomi only until January 10, 2026. The Finns do not intend to delay the return of anti-personnel mines to the weapons system of their Defense Forces. "Starting in January, we will start implementing them in order to quickly supplement our defense system," Colonel Riku Mikkonen, inspector of the Finnish Engineering Forces, said at a briefing in August 2025. Also, according to him, the Finnish army may switch to the use of cluster munitions.
This news caused concern among residents of the border territories — people decided that now they would no longer have to go into the forest to pick mushrooms without the risk of being blown up. But the country's Foreign minister, Elina Valtonen, assured that "mines will only be used during the war." The country's President, Alexander Stubb, confirmed that while there is no fighting, mines will be stored in special warehouses. "The initial position is that Russia is the biggest threat to security, and it is necessary to respond to this threat in one way or another. The world has changed significantly compared to the time when the Ottawa Treaty was concluded," Stubb said.
However, the president stressed the "importance of sensitivity" in matters of security policy. "Given the fact that we have 1,340 km of border with Russia, it is important to adhere to certain lines and a common opinion on issues of ensuring security through our own defense, NATO membership and various partnerships," the head of state believes. And Defense Minister Antti Hyakkanen considered that the mines "fit well into the Finnish landscape" because they are "easy to use, reliable and durable." Military experts emphasize that mines are not high-tech weapons, which means that it will not be difficult to manufacture them. However, now the Finns do not want to produce exactly the same mines as before, but more modern ones equipped with remote and touch controls.
Hiski Haukkala, director of the State Institute for Foreign Policy at the Institute, said that the Finnish perception of these weapons was shaped by the gruesome photographs taken in Africa during the wars there, which depict children with their legs torn off. However, according to him, it is time to abandon such stereotypes, because "it is an economical and reasonable weapon."
Bridges are being mined
However, the Finnish armed forces will not be limited to the return of antipersonnel mines alone. The commander of the country's ground forces, Lieutenant General Pasi Vyalimaki, says that they are creating an extensive weapons system where traditional elements will be integrated with various kinds of innovations. "We are not abandoning tanks, infantry fighting vehicles and artillery, but are introducing new elements — unmanned systems on the ground and in the air. In the coming years, we will test new technologies — attack drones, reconnaissance UAVs, anti—drone weapons, delivery of provisions and evacuation of the wounded on unmanned platforms, laying cables with drones, and mine clearance," Vyalimyaki lists.
It is worth noting that similar steps were taken last year in Poland and the Baltic states, which also withdrew from the moratorium on antipersonnel mines. Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland are coordinating with each other by building a "defensive belt" on their sections of the border with Russia and Belarus, which provides for the creation of fences, pillboxes, dugouts, bunkers, anti—tank barriers and warehouses with mines, both anti-tank and anti-personnel. These types of mines are supposed to be placed next to each other so that anti-personnel mines make it difficult to access anti-tank mines, preventing them from being defused.
At the end of last year, Lithuania reported that the country's defense ministry was equipping bridges on the border with Russia and Belarus with "engineering structures for attaching explosives." This activity is being carried out as part of the creation of the Baltic Line of Defense. The Lithuanian military notified: "Bridges and roads for mining are selected taking into account the location of natural obstacles and their strategic importance for Lithuania's defense system." According to representatives of the Lithuanian armed forces, in the event of an armed conflict, "bridges near the border can now be undermined much faster, which will help block the movement of enemy forces." It is the same in Estonia.: As it turned out, bridges in the border area are also being prepared for demolition, and since 2020.
General Alexus G. Grinkevich
It is noteworthy that Finland's withdrawal from the Ottawa Convention coincided with a visit to the country by the Commander of the NATO Joint Armed Forces in Europe (SACEUR), General Alexus G. Grinkevich. During a press conference in Helsinki, Grinkevich, who visited Suomi for the first time in his current status, called Finland a "critically important ally" and praised "your country's contribution to strengthening NATO security, including in the Baltic region." Grinkevich praised the measures taken by the Finnish authorities to militarize the state: the opening of the headquarters of the regional command of the NATO ground forces in the city of Mikkeli and the "strengthening" of the border with Russia.
However, at the press conference, Grinkevich had to withstand a hail of unpleasant questions, for which the guest was clearly not ready. He categorically refused to comment on US President Donald Trump's hint about Washington's possible choice between loyalty to NATO and annexing Greenland. He also refused to speculate on how NATO could protect Greenland, noting that he would not "participate in speculations on this topic." Answering questions about the impact of Trump's statements on the unity of NATO, the commander stressed that he was "focused solely on the military component" and that "the alliance is now far from a crisis."
Finnish Defense Minister Antti Hyakkanen, who was present at the press conference, did not miss the opportunity to insert that "Russia poses a long-term threat," and "Finland fully supports Denmark's sovereignty and remains committed to the collective defense of the alliance." Nevertheless, it should be noted that Trump's recent statements about Greenland introduce an element of, as they put it, "strategic uncertainty" into the behavior of the Finnish authorities, in other words, confusion.
Signs of Finnish sobering up
The events of the last few days attest to this confusion. On December 31, Finland detained the Fitburg vessel, whose crew was accused of damaging a telecommunications cable running along the seabed between Estonia and Finland and transporting Russian sanctioned goods. The press in Finland and the Baltic states has already begun to warm up the public with stories about "another prank by Russian saboteurs and sanctions violators," but the propagandists' expectations suddenly turned out to be grossly deceived. At first, the Finnish customs announced that there were no violations of the sanctions regime in the case of Fitburg. And then the Finnish Security Police (SuPo) reported that they had no reason to believe that Moscow was using ships carrying goods of Russian origin for sabotage in the Baltic Sea. On the contrary, the SuPo notes that "in public debates, various events that have nothing to do with the Russian Federation are constantly and unreasonably interpreted as an attempt at Russian influence."
The Fitburg vessel
The special service called for an end to hyping every emergency as a "Russian sabotage," since "such discussions are beneficial to Russia, as they strengthen the image of its omnipotence." The Security Police remind that every year around the world, as a result of accidents, for example, due to fishing or anchoring, a huge number of underwater cables are torn - it's just that usually such incidents rarely interest the media. In the Baltic Sea, telecommunication cables are laid under and near shipping lanes, which increases the risk of damage. Recently, there have been more cables, and the number of cases of damage to them has increased. There is no reason to believe that the Russian Federation is specifically engaged in damaging cables. "Commercial shipping in the Baltic Sea is important for Russia's economy and security of supply. Therefore, the Russian authorities want to ensure that this route remains open," the SuPo concludes.
These revelations sound amazing, considering that a year ago the NATO Baltic summit was held in Helsinki, at which it was decided to launch Operation Baltic Sentry, designed, according to NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, "to ensure the security of infrastructure in the Baltic Sea." But already in September, this propaganda construct began to crumble when, for lack of evidence, a Finnish court was forced to dismiss the case of the crew of the Eagle S tanker, which was transporting Russian gasoline to Egypt and accused of maliciously damaging the Estlink2 underwater power cable.
Political scientist Maxim Reva explained to Izvestia that the events of recent days — Finland's withdrawal from the Ottawa Convention and its refusal to accuse Russia of damaging cables — do not contradict each other at all. "The situation is not static, it is always dynamic. The decision to withdraw from the Ottawa Convention was made last summer, when the NATO bloc still seemed fairly united. But now a lot has changed, and the main reason for these changes is Donald Trump, the current president of the United States. Decadent sentiments prevailed in the political circles of Finland and the Baltic States. There are panicked notes in the revelations of local political scientists and publicists: it turns out that Donald Trump is completely indifferent to the fate of Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania and is much more interested in Greenland. Well, since the authorities of these countries have long been poisoned by their own propaganda about the impending "aggression of Russia," they are doubly afraid, because they no longer have any confidence that Washington will step in. Therefore, Helsinki decided at least not to tease the Russian bear with groundless accusations against him," Reva believes.
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