Nobel laureates urge Baltic States, Poland, Finland to reconsider landmine treaty withdrawal
VILNIUS, June 23 (Xinhua) -- A group of 100 Nobel Prize laureates has called on Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia, Poland, and Finland to reconsider their plans to withdraw from the Ottawa Convention, an international treaty that bans the use of anti-personnel landmines, the Baltic News Service (BNS) reported Monday.
In a statement issued last week, the laureates voiced deep concern over the potential humanitarian consequences of the countries' withdrawal, warning that such actions could endanger civilian lives and undermine decades of progress in global disarmament.
The Ottawa Convention, signed in 1997, has played a pivotal role in reducing landmine-related casualties around the world. However, in light of evolving regional security threats, the defense ministers of Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, and Poland announced earlier this year their intention to exit the treaty. Finland later joined the initiative.
Withdrawal from the convention would allow these countries to legally acquire, produce, stockpile, use, and transfer anti-personnel landmines.
The Nobel laureates also criticized Lithuania's recent exit from the Convention on Cluster Munitions, which was finalized in March.
Under the terms of the Ottawa Convention, a country's withdrawal becomes effective six months after it formally notifies the United Nations Secretary-General.
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