Ukraine has decided to cease fulfilling irrelevant obligations under the Ottawa Convention, since it is forced to give unconditional priority to the security of its citizens and the defense of its state in the conditions of a full-scale war.
This was reported by Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine.
The department is convinced that this step is necessary and appropriate to the level of threats, because we are talking about the survival and preservation of Ukraine as a sovereign, independent and free state.
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— In conditions when Russia is committing genocide with the aim of destroying Ukraine as a state and Ukrainians as a nation, Ukraine is forced to give unconditional priority to the security of its citizens and the defense of its state. This also concerns the participation of our state in international legal documents and mechanisms, — the statement says.
This decision was made taking into account the unconditional priority of defending our state from harsh Russian aggression, our land from occupation, and our people from terrible Russian atrocities.
Ottawa Convention: What is this document?
The Ottawa Convention prohibits the use, stockpiling, production and transfer of anti-personnel mines, and also stipulates the need to destroy them. Ukraine ratified the document in 2005 and has been conscientiously fulfilling the provisions set out in it.
At the same time, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs notes that the Russian Federation, not being a state party to the Ottawa Convention, unleashed armed aggression against Ukraine and has been widely using anti-personnel mines as a method of warfare since 2014.
— Since 2022, when Russia began a full-scale invasion of our territory, its massive use of such means has created an asymmetric advantage for the aggressor.
We emphasize that at the time of signing and ratification of the Ottawa Convention by our state, such circumstances did not exist and could not have been foreseen, the statement says.
Thus, Ukraine finds itself in an unequal and unfair situation, which limits its right to self-defense under Article 51 of the UN Charter.
Ukraine is not the only one that faces a difficult choice between fulfilling its obligations under the Ottawa Convention and effectively protecting its country from an aggressor that disregards all international legal norms.
The armed aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine has already forced a number of states – Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Poland and Finland – to reconsider their position and make a joint political decision to withdraw from the Ottawa Convention.
Let us recall that on June 29, President Vladimir Zelensky signed a decree on Ukraine's withdrawal from the Ottawa Convention, which prohibits the use, stockpiling and production of anti-personnel mines.
