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.

Poland and the Baltic states on Tuesday took a first step towards quitting a treaty banning anti-personnel mines, citing an increased security risk from Russia following its invasion of Ukraine.