Poland to resume anti-personnel mine production for first time since Cold War - Reuters
Illustrative photo: Poland’s border (Getty Images)
Poland is resuming the production of anti-personnel mines for the first time since the Cold War to strengthen its eastern border and bolster defense, according to Reuters.
This concerns an element of the East Shield program, under which Warsaw plans to significantly strengthen defenses along the border with Belarus and Russia’s Kaliningrad region.
In addition, according to Polish Deputy Defense Minister Pawel Zalewski, if production exceeds domestic needs, supplies to allies — specifically Ukraine — are possible. He said that the security of Europe and Poland is linked to the Russia–Ukraine front, making support for Kyiv a priority.
Under the East Shield defense program, fortifications are planned along an 800 km-long border.
Polish state-owned company Belma, which already supplies various types of mines to the military, plans to produce 5–6 million mines of different types, including anti-personnel ones. The company’s current output is about 100,000 mines per year, but next year the plant will be able to produce up to 1.2 million units.
Similar production in other countries
Earlier this year, Lithuania and Finland also announced plans to resume the production of anti-personnel mines in 2026, while Latvia and Estonia are leaving the 1997 Ottawa Convention, which bans such weapons, and could quickly start production if needed.
Poland’s process of withdrawing from the Ottawa Convention began in August 2025. Mine production can start after the six-month withdrawal period ends, i.e., from February 20, 2026.
Ukraine has also announced its withdrawal from the convention in order to be able to defend itself against Russia, which has not signed the treaty.
Thus, Poland is joining a broader regional trend: almost all European countries bordering Russia, except Norway, are abandoning the restrictions of the Ottawa Convention to strengthen their own defenses.
The United States officially approved a new $4 billion credit guarantee for Poland, which is intended to help the country modernize its armed forces.
Incidentally, Poland will build fortifications under the East Shield project not only along the border with Russia but also along the borders with Belarus and Ukraine. This is aimed at ensuring greater security along the entire eastern border.
The start of construction of the defensive lines along the Russian border was announced on November 1. The project is planned to be completed by 2028.
