Ukraine Moves To Exit Landmine Treaty After Record Russian Missile Barrage

Ukraine is taking steps to withdraw from the 1997 Ottawa Convention the international treaty banning anti-personnel landmines as it faces an increasingly brutal campaign from Russia, which never signed the agreement and continues to use landmines indiscriminately against civilians and soldiers alike.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a decree on Monday initiating the withdrawal, calling Russia’s use of landmines a “signature style” of warfare that has devastated Ukrainian lives and territory. Ukraine’s parliament must now approve the move to make it official.

"Russia has never been a party to this convention and uses anti-personnel mines extremely cynically," Zelenskyy said. “This is the signature style of Russian killers to destroy life by all methods at their disposal.”

This development comes as Ukraine faces its worst aerial assault since the war began in February 2022:

• Russia launched 537 aerial weapons in a single day, including 477 drones and decoys and 60 missiles.

• Ukraine reported shooting down 249 and jamming 226 of them.

• Casualties included multiple civilian deaths and injuries across Kherson, Kharkiv, and Cherkasy regions.

• One F-16 fighter jet was lost, with the pilot killed while intercepting targets.

In war zones retaken from Russian forces, Ukrainian troops continue to uncover anti-personnel mines used to target retreating forces and trap civilians. This reality, coupled with Ukraine's growing reliance on F-16s and NATO-supplied systems, is forcing a shift in defensive doctrine.

The Ottawa Convention, signed by more than 160 countries, prohibits the use, production, and stockpiling of anti-personnel mines due to their post-conflict dangers. But as Russia continues to ignore every international norm including civilian safety Kyiv is arguing the treaty ties its hands in self-defense.

While Western critics may object, the reality is plain: treaties only work when all parties respect them. Russia’s use of banned weapons, indiscriminate bombing, and nuclear threats has rendered many international agreements meaningless.

Ukraine’s move is not about escalation. It’s about survival.

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