Hellenic Navy denies theft of anti-personnel mines from Leros warehouse

The Hellenic Navy on Thursday denied a press report claiming that anti-personnel landmines were stolen along with other military equipment from its base on the island of Leros on Monday, saying it does not have any such weapons in stock.

"The reports…are untrue and do not correspond to reality," HN said in a press release, adding that it does not possess in its arsenal material that has been banned by international treaties and agreements.

Greek newspaper Estia reported on Thursday that 140 APLs were among the weapons taken from the base on Monday. Greece is a signatory of the 1999 Ottawa Convention or Mine Ban Treaty, which seeks to end their use worldwide. Its APLs should have been destroyed by March 2008.

The paper also claims that Greece still has 400,000 APLs in military warehouses.

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