Ukraine is prepared to begin mass production of anti-personnel mines to alter battlefield dynamics and strengthen its defense.

After passing a law suspending Ukraine’s participation in the Ottawa Convention, which prohibits anti-personnel mines, and its approval by the president, the production of such munitions for the military can begin almost immediately, said Roman Kostenko, Secretary of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on National Security, Defense, and Intelligence.

He explained that technically, producing these mines is not complicated, so during wartime, the process can be established quickly. Kostenko believes that Ukraine’s use of anti-personnel mines will substantially change the battlefield and bolster national defense along the entire border.

“If we take into account the border with Belarus and Russia, it is over 3,000 kilometers. And a minefield with a width of at least several dozen kilometers should be created in this section. This is preventive defense”, Kostenko noted.

According to him, fortifications alone do not guarantee a reliable defense; they must be combined with mines and explosive engineering barriers.