Statement by NSC Spokesperson Adrienne Watson on Changes to U.S. Anti-Personnel Landmine Policy
Today, the Biden-Harris Administration is announcing an important step to limit the United States’ use of anti-personnel landmines. At the President’s direction, the United States will align its policy concerning use of these weapons outside of the Korean Peninsula with key provisions of the Ottawa Convention, the international treaty prohibiting the use, stockpiling, production, and transfer of anti-personnel landmines. Additionally, the President will prohibit the development, production, and acquisition of anti-personnel landmines prohibited under the Ottawa Convention, and will direct the Department of Defense to undertake diligent efforts to pursue alternatives to anti-personnel landmines that would be compliant with and ultimately allow the United States to accede to the Ottawa Convention, while ensuring our continued ability to respond to global contingencies.
The world has once again witnessed the devastating impact that anti-personnel landmines can have in the context of Russia’s brutal and unprovoked war in Ukraine, where Russian forces’ use of these and other munitions have caused extensive harm to civilians and civilian objects. President Biden is committed to continuing the United States’ role as the world’s leader in mitigating the harmful consequences of anti-personnel landmines worldwide. Since 1993, the United States has invested more than $4.2 billion in more than 100 countries to promote international peace and security through conventional weapons destruction programs. We will continue this important work as we take another step to reclaim American leadership on the world stage.
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