KYIV: Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Sunday (Jun 29) signed a decree putting his war-torn country on track to leave the anti-landmine Ottawa Convention, according to a document published on his website.
The treaty bans signatories from acquiring, producing, stockpiling or using anti-personnel mines, which are designed to be buried or hidden on the ground.
They often leave victims mutilated if they are not immediately killed, and aid groups denounce the long-term risk of unexploded mines for civilians.
More than 160 countries and territories are signatories to the Ottawa Convention, though neither the United States nor Russia have joined.