Finland officially withdrew from the Ottawa Anti-Personnel Landmines Convention on 10 January 2026, and is launching a procurement process for this type of weaponry, according to the Finnish Defence Forces website.
The withdrawal from the convention allows the country's military to acquire anti-personnel landmines and launch personnel training programs. "For the Defence Forces, anti-personnel landmines are one addition to our system in a time when strengthening defence capability is particularly important," said Inspector of Engineers, Colonel Riku Mikkonen from the Army Command.
Training and implementation
Training for military personnel will begin in early 2026, and for conscripts starting from Contingent 1/2026. Reservists will receive training during refresher exercises depending on their assignments.
"We will use mines only in emergency conditions in accordance with units' plans in combat areas as part of other use of fire. In peacetime, anti-personnel mine training will be conducted using training equipment," Mikkonen explained.
Personnel, reservists and conscripts will be trained in responsible mine use: marking, documenting and monitoring their deployment, as well as selecting areas for placement to avoid harm to civilians or own units.
Implementation phases
At the first phase, directed fragmentation charges will be used, as they can also function as mines and are already available in the Finnish Defence Forces.
New anti-personnel mines are intended to be developed in cooperation with domestic defence industry with a goal of manufacturing them in Finland. Discussions with Finnish companies will start in early 2026. The Defence Forces will also monitor opportunities for supplies from abroad.
According to Colonel Mikkonen, the new anti-personnel mines should be simple, affordable and easy to use. "Aspects taken into account in the consideration of new anti-personnel landmines include, among others, the security environment, quantities of mines to be stockpiled in peacetime, and the ability to produce new mines quickly in emergency conditions," he noted.
More advanced technology will be considered at a later stage, featuring sophisticated sensors, remote controllability, remote delivery, and auto-neutralization.
Timeline and costs
The first new mines and their exercise equipment are expected to become available during 2027, after which anti-personnel mine training will become a regular part of conscript and reservist training.
"The production of anti-personnel mines will involve several years. A more accurate estimate of the cost of these acquisitions will be obtained as the planning advances," Mikkonen said.
After Finland's accession to the Ottawa Convention, the capability of anti-personnel landmines was replaced by acquiring modernized anti-tank mines, directed fragmentation charges, night vision devices, drones, reconnaissance equipment and rocket launcher capability. According to the Defence Forces, these capabilities have had and continue to have vital importance to overall capability, and defence is being developed as an entity to be complemented by new anti-personnel landmines.
The purpose of anti-personnel landmines is to slow down the enemy's movement and operations, make it harder to clear obstacles and anti-tank mines, monitor and deny access to areas, as well as protect targets and cause enemy casualties.
