Military expert allowed transfer of anti-personnel mines by European countries to Ukraine

Some EU countries would like to withdraw from the Ottawa Treaty on the prohibition of anti-personnel mines in order to earn money on their transfer for the needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU). This was stated on March 18 in an interview with Izvestia by a military expert, retired Colonel Viktor Litovkin.

Earlier in the day, it became known that the defense ministers of Poland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania recommended that their countries withdraw from the Ottawa Convention on the Prohibition of anti-personnel mines. At the same time, according to the Politico newspaper, this is more of a "political signal to Moscow" than a reflection of the immediate military need.

"These guys want to make money on antipersonnel mines. Maybe they will be given orders for these mines. They will say that they are supposedly protecting themselves from Russia. But they will transfer them to Ukraine, and Ukraine is a terrorist state with all the consequences," Litovkin commented.

He also stressed that in this case, the European countries will be paid not by Kiev, but by Brussels.

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On March 7, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk announced that Warsaw was considering the possibility of withdrawing from the Ottawa Convention, as well as from the Dublin Convention on Cluster Munitions. He stressed that all Polish neighbors have both types of weapons. According to him, in such circumstances, Warsaw itself should use all available means to ensure the security of the state.