In a joint statement, the defence ministers of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland said that since signing the Ottawa Treaty, threats from Moscow and its ally Belarus have "significantly increased". It is "paramount" to give their troops "flexibility and freedom of choice" to defend Nato's eastern flank, they said.

But the ministers of Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia argue that the security situation along NATO’s eastern flank has “fundamentally deteriorated” since they signed on to the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention, and that “military threats to NATO member states bordering Russia and Belarus have significantly increased.”

Poland and three Baltic states announced their intention to quit a treaty banning antipersonnel mines to give their forces a critical defensive edge amid a "fundamental" deterioration in their security due to Russia.