The United States announced on the 21st (local time) that it would completely ban the use of anti-personnel mines outside of the Korean Peninsula. It is interpreted as a measure in response to concerns about Russia’s use of explosives, including anti-personnel mines, recently.
The White House said in a press release on the same day that the U.S. plans to ban the use of anti-personnel mines under the Ottawa Agreement. The Ottawa Convention bans the use, production, and stockpiling of anti-personnel mines, and over 160 countries, including NATO members, have signed up. However, the United States is not a signatory to the Ottawa Convention, and South Korea, China, and North Korea are the same.
The White House said, “The United States does not produce, use, or stockpile landmines, and will not support any action that is inconsistent with the Ottawa Convention other than for the purpose of defending the Korean Peninsula.” We plan to destroy any landmines that are not needed for the project,” he said.
The White House said, “After sufficient policy review, we have decided to join the antipersonnel mine restrictions that most countries around the world are participating in,” the White House said. said
However, he said that the land mines in South Korea remained unchanged. The White House said, “According to the uniqueness of the Korean Peninsula and the United States’ commitment to the defense of the Republic of Korea, we will maintain the anti-personnel mine policy on the Korean Peninsula at this point. “Even in the U.S. effort to replace anti-personnel mines, the security of our ally South Korea will be our top priority,” he said.
The National Security Council (NSC) also issued a separate statement: “The world has once again witnessed the horrific effects of anti-personnel mines in the course of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. “Since 1993, the United States has provided $4.2 billion to more than 100 countries to eliminate conventional weapons.”
“This action is in stark contrast to Russia’s actions in Ukraine,” the State Department said. “There is countless evidence that the Russian military is using explosives, including anti-personnel mines,” he said. According to the State Department, the U.S. currently stockpiles 3 million antipersonnel mines, with the exception of one in Afghanistan in 2002, the last time it used antipersonnel mines during the 1991 Gulf War.
Criticism is rising as Russia recently reported that it used conventional weapons in violation of international treaties, such as anti-personnel mines, in the course of its invasion of Ukraine. The United States previously announced a policy similar to that of the Biden administration in September 2014, when former President Barack Obama said it would ban the use of anti-personnel mines. However, even at that time, it did not join the Ottawa Convention due to the ‘Korean Peninsula Exception Policy’.
