US to limit use of anti-personnel landmines, White House says

The United States has decided to limit the use of anti-personnel landmines, joining most countries around the world including all of its NATO allies, in prohibiting the use of the weapons, the White House said on Tuesday.

The move reflects President Joe Biden's belief that the landmines "have a disproportionate impact on civilians, including children, long after fighting has stopped," the White House said in a statement.

The change does not affect US anti-personnel landmine policy on the Korean Peninsula due to the unique circumstances there and the commitment of the United States to defending South Korea, the White House said.

The move will align US policy with the Ottawa Convention, the international treaty prohibiting the use, stockpiling, production, and transfer of anti-personnel landmines, the statement said.

The United States will also work towards destroying all anti-personnel landmine stockpiles except for those that are required for the defence of South Korea, it said.