Lithuania notifies UN of withdrawal from landmine ban treaty

PHOTO CAPTION: Illustrative photo — a British soldier emplaces an M18A1 Claymore mine during a training exercise at Bemowo Piskie Training Area, Poland on July 10, 2018. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Hubert D. Delany III via U.S. Defense Visual Information Distribution Service)

VILNIUS  -  Lithuania has notified the United Nations it is leaving the treaty banning anti-personnel landmines, its foreign minister posted on X on Friday.

The country will no longer be bound by the treaty six months after the notification.

Parliaments of Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Finland and Poland - all NATO and EU members bordering Russia - have approved withdrawal of their countries from the treaty, citing the increased military danger from their neighbour.

 (Reporting by Andrius Sytas in Vilnius; editing by Diane Craft // REUTERS)