Poland to start producing anti-personnel mines to lay along eastern border – reports

Poland has decided to resume the production of anti-personnel landmines for the first time since the Cold War, with plans to deploy them along its eastern border and potentially export them to Ukraine, according to comments made to Reuters by Deputy Defence Minister Pawel Zalewski.

The move aligns Poland with a wider regional shift, as most European countries bordering Russia, with the exception of Norway, have announced plans to withdraw from the 1997 Ottawa Convention, which bans the use, production and transfer of anti-personnel mines. Warsaw intends to use the weapons to strengthen its borders with Belarus and Russia, including the Kaliningrad exclave.

“We are interested in large quantities as soon as possible,” Zalewski told Reuters, confirming for the first time that Poland would move ahead with production once its withdrawal from the treaty is completed.

The mines would form part of Poland’s “East Shield” programme, aimed at fortifying the country’s 800-kilometre eastern frontier. Zalewski said he hoped production could begin next year, following the end of the six-month withdrawal period from the Ottawa Convention, which concludes in February 2026.

State-owned defence firm Belma, which already supplies other types of mines to the Polish military, said Poland could ultimately require between five and six million mines under the programme. Belma’s chief executive, Jaroslaw Zakrzewski, told Reuters the company could ramp up output to as many as 1.2 million mines next year, compared with around 100,000 annually at present.

While Poland’s own needs would come first, Zalewski said supplying Ukraine remained a priority if production capacity allows. Belma confirmed that excess output could also be sold to allies, noting interest from NATO states in the Baltic region.

The decision comes amid heightened security concerns following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which has also announced its own withdrawal from the treaty.