PAX, like the International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL) of which PAX is a member, is deeply concerned about the US decision to transfer anti-personnel landmines to Ukraine. This alarming development not only contradicts the United States’ own policy, but also runs counter to Ukraine’s obligations under the anti-personnel landmines convention, also known as the Ottawa Convention or Mine Ban Treaty.
PAX has previously expressed support for arms transfers to Ukraine to enable it to defend itself and protect its citizens from the Russian aggression. This position remains unchanged. But anti-personnel landmines, like cluster munitions, are weapons that disproportionately and indiscriminately harm civilians and violate international norms. The Netherlands should discourage all parties to conflict from using these weapons, anywhere and under any circumstance. The fact that Russia widely and frequently violates these norms should not prompt Ukraine to further contribute to the problem of mine contamination.
International law
International humanitarian law dictates that all parties to a conflict must distinguish between civilians and military personnel. Anti-personnel landmines fail this test. The disproportionate suffering these weapons caused to civilians worldwide has been well documented. In 1997, the Mine Ban Treaty banning the use, stockpiling, production and transfer of anti-personnel mines came into being. The treaty since then has been signed by 164 countries, including the Netherlands and Ukraine. Russia and the United States did not sign the treaty, though President Biden stipulated in 2022 that the US would align its policy with the key requirements of the Mine Ban Treaty, with an exception for the Korean Peninsula.
Civilian harm
Anti-personnel mines make no distinction between civilians and military personnel and often create casualties even years after a conflict has ended. The legacy of previous use, as well as recent use by Myanmar, Russia, Iran, and North Korea and non-state actors, still causes many casualties. In 2023, at least 5,757 people were killed and wounded by landmines and explosive remnants of war worldwide. Where the status was known, 84% of recorded casualties were civilians. Children accounted for more than a third of all civilian casualties, according to research by the Landmine Monitor. Landmines ensure that even after a conflict ends, a country remains under the spell of war for a long time because, risks remain on the ground to civilians, meaning people can not return safely to their homes, and farmland cannot be safely put to use.
Landmines in Ukraine
In Ukraine, widespread Russian use of landmines caused at least 580 casualties in 2023. Although the exact extent of mine contamination is not known, Human Rights Watch estimates that 30% of Ukraine is contaminated with landmines. Both PAX and the International Campaign Against Landmines have repeatedly condemned Russian use of landmines in Ukraine. Ukraine’s use of anti-personnel mines will further contribute to this humanitarian problem and violate the commitments under the Mine Ban Treaty to which Ukraine is a member. Even mines equipped with ‘self-destruct’ or ‘self-activating’ mechanisms pose significant risks, as these functions do not always function as intended and still require dangerous and costly demining operations afterwards.
The Netherlands and anti-personnel landmines
The Netherlands is a State Party to the Mine Ban Treaty and a major donor to mine action worldwide. The US decision to supply anti-personnel mines to Ukraine undermines the global fight against anti personnel landmines. The Netherlands has been committed to a world free of anti-personnel landmines for decades already, through diplomacy and support for mine action including victim assistance.
Today, the international community meets in Cambodia for the fifth review conference of the Mine Ban Treaty. The Netherlands is also attending. PAX calls on the Netherlands to continue to stand up for a world free of anti personnel landmines and for a world where international norms and treaties are jointly protected and enforced. We call upon the Netherlands to call all parties violating these norms to account, both bilaterally and publicly, even if they are allies. The review conference in Cambodia is an appropriate opportunity to do so.
