The head of the Ministry of National Defense Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz calls to withdraw from the Ottawa Convention. In the Sejm almost unanimously

Law and Justice, Civic Coalition, Polish People's Party, Poland 2050 and Confederation were in favor of the government's bill, which provides for the termination of the Ottawa Convention. Earlier, Minister of Defense Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz appealed for unanimity in this matter.

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On Tuesday evening in the Sejm the first reading of the government bill on the termination of the Ottawa Convention regarding the ban on the use of anti -personnel mines as an means of armed struggle. The treaty also prohibits the storage, production and transfer of anti -personnel mines and orders them to be destroyed. Poland became a signatory to the contract on December 4, 1997, but it only ratified it in 2012.

The project was followed by: PiS, KO, PSL, Poland 2050 i Confederation. MPs of the Left Club did not participate in the debate on the project. After the debate, the Sejm sent a project to the Sejm National Defense Committee and the Foreign Affairs Committee for consideration.

Kosiniak-Kamysz: It's all so that there was no war

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense Władysław Kosiniak-Kamyszpresenting the assumptions of the project, he emphasized that the termination of the treaty was aimed at scaring the opponent. – All the activities we conduct are so that there is no war, that no one would pay to attack us – he noted.

He said that Poland wants to be able to produce and store anti -personnel mines, “scares in this way and not have tied hands to defend their homeland.” He added that Poland would still comply with humanitarian principles. He assured that “nothing changes” on Poland's obligations regarding international agreements on the protection of civilians.

Kosiniak-Kamysz called all Sejm clubs to support the project. As he pointed out, “this is a multi -stage process.” He added that from the moment of notification to UN The decision on the termination of the Treaty will pass 6 months before the regulations come into force.

Consent in the Sejm

PiS MP Radosław Fogiel He emphasized that his club was supporting the project. According to him, anti -personnel mines are crucial to ensure security, even if someone “has any humanitarian doubts.”

MP Joanna Kluzik-Rostkowska expressed support for further work on the project. As she noted, the Russian Federation never intended to proceed to the Ottawa Convention. She emphasized that Poland in its territory “would have faces anyway.” – The question is whether these will be only Russian faces used against us, whether they will be the faces we can defend our land – she added.

Piotr Strach (Poland 2050-TD) pointed out that “we do not want to withdraw from the Ottawa Convention, but we have to”. According to him, the Baltic line of defense is a project connecting northern European countries that see this “the same danger from the East”.

MP Radosław Lubczyk (PSL-TD) also expressed support for the project. He estimated that Poland was in a completely different situation compared to the times when the convention was ratified in 2012 – the rules adopted in peace times could not put us in the role of defenseless observers in times of danger – he noted.

Andrzej Zapałowski (Confederation) stated that Poland spent billions on the purchase of mines, and after ratification of the convention spent millions of destruction. – Now he will spend billions of purchase again. And it happened only in a dozen or so years – noted the MP. He assessed that in Poland there is a “problem of strategic culture of politicians”.

Convention on Anti -Cunting Mines

The Ottawska Convention prohibits the use, storage, production and transfer of anti -personnel mines, as well as imposes on the signatories the obligation to destroy them.

The convention was prepared in 1997 during a diplomatic conference on the total ban on the use of anti -personnel mines. She entered into force two years later. 165 countries have signed it so far. This was not done, among others, by the United States, Russia, ChinaIsrael and Iran.

In the preamble to the state convention, the syntracts undertook to put an end to the use of anti-personnel mines, which “kill and mutilate hundreds of people, mainly innocent and defenseless civilians, especially children.”

Regulations regarding land mines

There are two types of land mines: anti -personnel and anti -tank. The Ottawska Convention covers only anti -personnel, “intended for an explosion as a result of the presence, approach or contact of a person and causing incapacitation, mutilation or death of one or more people”.

Poland signed the convention in 1997, but the government adopted information about Poland's readiness to complete its provisions 12 years later. One of the reasons for the delay was a significant number of stored mines and high costs of destruction. Finally, in 2012, the Sejm adopted the Act on the ratification of the Convention, and the then president Bronisław Komorowski He signed it.

In December 2024, the Finland government stated that it was considering withdrawing from the Convention, and in March 2025 Ministers of Defense of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland announced their withdrawal of their countries, arguing that since the ratification of the convention “the security situation in our region has become significantly worsened.”

“In the light of this unstable security environment, marked by the aggression of Russia and its constant threat to the Euro -Atlantic community, the assessment of all measures to strengthen our ability to deterous and defense is of key importance,” the ministers wrote in a statement.

According to the international campaign report to the ban on anti -personnel (ICBL) from 2024, Russia is commonly used by anti -personnel faces in Ukraine. In October 2024, the UN announced that Ukraine is the most mined country in the world.

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