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German Lawmaker Urges Temporary Exit From Anti-Mine Treaty Over Russian Threat
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![Photo of Dariia Mykhailenko]( "Photo of Dariia Mykhailenko")
Roderich Kiesewetter, foreign policy spokesman for the Christian Democratic Union in the Bundestag, has called on Germany to temporarily withdraw from the Ottawa Convention banning anti-personnel mines, ZDF reported on July 31.
His proposal comes as several NATO members—including the Baltic states, Finland, and Poland—have begun the process of leaving the treaty in response to escalating security threats.
Kiesewetter argues that Russia’s war against Ukraine, in which Moscow has extensively used anti-personnel mines, has forced frontline states to reconsider their defensive capabilities.
“I support a temporary withdrawal from the Ottawa Convention—temporary, until Russia recognizes the right of its neighboring states to exis,” Kiesewetter said.
While Germany does not share a direct border with Russia or Belarus, Kiesewetter warned that German forces are not immune to risk. He pointed in particular to the Bundeswehr tank brigade permanently stationed in Lithuania, which he believes could be exposed.
“Germany must ask itself whether we are becoming a target in Lithuania and whether we are making ourselves vulnerable due to a lack of deterrence,” he added.
Earlier, it was reported that Ukraine is taking formal steps to withdraw from the Ottawa Convention, the international treaty banning the use, production, and stockpiling of anti-personnel landmines.
Ukrainian MP Roman Kostenko, Secretary of the Parliamentary Committee on National Security, confirmed that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has signed a decree to enact the National Security and Defense Council’s decision to exit the treaty.
