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ysabetwordsmithThe Mine Ban Convention (the 1997 Landmine Convention) ban is one of the greatest humanitarian achievements of our time. Yet now, this legacy is under threat.
Poland, Finland, and Estonia are now discussing quitting the global landmine ban. Latvia and Lithuania have already voted to leave but could still reconsider their decision. If we stay silent, more may follow—and Europe could unravel 25 years of progress in protecting civilian life. More lives and limbs will be lost.
Well, look at the context. Finland, Estonia, and Latvia all border Russia. Lithuania borders Latvia and Poland, while Poland borders Ukraine. These are all places that Russia could overrun in the foreseeable future. So it looks like area denial to me. Landmines would make the territory much less attractive to Russia. And given that Europe hasn't done enough to keep Russia out of Ukraine, i can't really blame other countries for wanting to find cheap, accessible, effective methods to protect themselves. Landmines may be heinous but they do a damn good job of defending boundaries.
If Europe wanted to keep the landmine ban, and for that matter other bans along the lines of "this is hideous, let's not do it anymore because we're more civilized now," then they should've put boots on the ground immediately rather than letting Russia fuck Ukraine over a bench. Sure I'd like to have a world with less war and less gruesome weapons. But I don't feel that it's ethical to demand other countries give up weapons they might need to defend themselves. Like Ukraine gave up the nukes it inherited from the breakup of the Soviet Union.
Poland, Finland, and Estonia are now discussing quitting the global landmine ban. Latvia and Lithuania have already voted to leave but could still reconsider their decision. If we stay silent, more may follow—and Europe could unravel 25 years of progress in protecting civilian life. More lives and limbs will be lost.
Well, look at the context. Finland, Estonia, and Latvia all border Russia. Lithuania borders Latvia and Poland, while Poland borders Ukraine. These are all places that Russia could overrun in the foreseeable future. So it looks like area denial to me. Landmines would make the territory much less attractive to Russia. And given that Europe hasn't done enough to keep Russia out of Ukraine, i can't really blame other countries for wanting to find cheap, accessible, effective methods to protect themselves. Landmines may be heinous but they do a damn good job of defending boundaries.
If Europe wanted to keep the landmine ban, and for that matter other bans along the lines of "this is hideous, let's not do it anymore because we're more civilized now," then they should've put boots on the ground immediately rather than letting Russia fuck Ukraine over a bench. Sure I'd like to have a world with less war and less gruesome weapons. But I don't feel that it's ethical to demand other countries give up weapons they might need to defend themselves. Like Ukraine gave up the nukes it inherited from the breakup of the Soviet Union.
Re: Thoughts
Date: 2025-05-30 09:04 am (UTC)Nor that easy. They can't be hidden near as well and are easily shot down. They can be hacked, too, whereas dumb mines cannot.
>> But if you factor in the cost of removal then they work out cheaper. <<
You have to hang onto your territory long enough for that to matter.
>>I think the problem is that military strategists tends towards being conservative.<<
That's one reason, but mines have a lot of other advantages.