Today, April 4, is the International Day of Mine Awareness and Mine Action Assistance. Due to the full-scale invasion of the Russian Federation as an aggressor state, Ukraine has become one of the most mined countries in the world. The total area of the territory potentially contaminated by explosive objects is 156 thousand square kilometers, which is 25% of the total area.
To date, Ukraine has encountered various cases of landmines that pose a danger to the civilian population. Sappers work on using the latest technologies and demining methods, predicting and determining the most effective ways to solve this problem.
The territory of Ukraine, contaminated by explosive objects as a result of the invasion of the Russian Federation, totals 174 thousand square kilometers, which is about 30% of the total area of the country.
During a visit to Zagreb, Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal compared the area, which is now threatened by mines, with the territory of three Croatia. It is also almost two square meters of Hungary, more than two square meters of the Czech Republic, more than four square meters of the Netherlands and almost eight square meters of Israel.
However, according to the State Emergency Service (SES), thanks to the work of demining specialists, the area of this zone decreased by 18,000 square kilometers, to 156,000 square kilometers, which is about 25% of the total area of Ukraine.
Specialists note that Kharkiv, Kherson and Donetsk regions remain the most dangerous.
According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, at the end of February, sappers discovered more than 760,000 explosive devices during the full-scale invasion. Most of them were found in de-occupied territories.
The State Emergency Service emphasizes that the main priority for specialists is the demining of de-occupied settlements, critical and transport routes, as well as agricultural lands.
During the retreat of the enemy, a significant number of mines were consciously left in the territories that were previously occupied. A particularly large number of explosive objects remain in the forests, in particular in the Izyum and Balaklia districts, where Russian troops were temporarily stationed.
According to the State Forestry Agency, a large part of the forest fund, which returned to the control of Ukraine, remains unsuitable for use. Approximately 0.5 million hectares of forests of the State Forestry Agency require demining. It is indicated that the process of demining in forests can take several decades.
The government is also working on faster demining of agricultural land, which is an important step for the restoration of agriculture in the de-occupied territories. In this context, the government approved the procedure for compensating farmers for the humanitarian demining of agricultural lands.
"The government's decision today will give farmers the opportunity to conclude contracts with state and private mine action operators this spring and receive compensation from the state budget," the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine notes.
At the same time, experts report that explosive objects are often found in the most unexpected places.
“We find 'explosive gifts' in the most unexpected places, from front doors to personal belongings, closets, beds, even in beehives. The most dangerous are grenades on streamers," said Serhiy Reva, head of the humanitarian demining department of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine.
In addition, experts report cases of demining of children's toys and other objects that attract the attention of children, and therefore pose a great threat to their life and health. Pyrotechnicians also encountered situations when the enemy placed an anti-personnel mine under an anti-tank mine - as soon as the sappers approach to remove the anti-tank mine, the anti-personnel mine is triggered. In addition, the explosion of anti-personnel ammunition can cause the explosion of anti-tank, and accordingly the number of casualties can be much higher.
According to the data of the Ministry of Defense as of February 2024, 287 civilians, including 15 children, were killed as a result of detonation using explosive devices, and another 641 people were injured, including 77 children.
Employees of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine remind about the rules of behavior when detecting explosive and suspicious objects:
- Do not touch or move the suspicious object with your hands.
- Mark the location of the suspicious object with sticks, clothing, rocks, etc.
- Warn other people nearby and take them to a safe distance (at least 100 meters).
- Use only official channels to report suspicious explosive devices by calling the emergency numbers “101” or “102”.
- Refrain from using telephones or other means of radio communication in the vicinity of a suspicious object.
- Do not try to disassemble a suspicious item, remove explosives or a detonator from it.
- Be aware that dangerous items can be found in the most unexpected places, such as fields, forests, ponds, gardens and ruins.
- Explosive objects can be activated even by the slightest external impact, such as impact, shock, friction or heat.
The Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, Ihor Klymenko, said that all the forces of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, including the State Emergency Service, the National Police and sapper units of the National Guard, are now involved in demining the territory of Ukraine. According to him, every day more than 1,500 trained sappers and 33 mechanized demining machines work for this purpose.
"We calculated that one day of operation of these machines is equivalent to 100 days of work of a pyrotechnician or a sapper," Klymenko noted.
Meanwhile, he also noted that Ukraine needs at least 100 mechanized demining machines and about 5,000 pyrotechnicians for further demining. The minister also spoke about the department's efforts to find innovative methods of demining, in particular, the use of drones for reconnaissance of territories and detection of contaminated areas.
For his part, the Minister of Digital Transformation, Mykhailo Fedorov, said that Ukraine is developing artificial intelligence in the demining process.
"Ukrainian artificial intelligence developers UADamage are working on technology to speed up the identification of mines, projectiles and craters from explosions, which may also contain dangerous debris," he added.
In the Kharkiv region, a domestic machine for preparing the soil before demining has started working. This machine works remotely, controlled by an automatic remote control, which ensures the safety of pyrotechnicians during work.
The machine weighs 16 tons and moves at a speed of 3-4 kilometers per hour. The State Emergency Service emphasizes that this technical tool allows you to perform tasks faster, safer and more efficiently than sappers can do manually. According to them, the PM-B vehicle, which is said to be the safest vehicle for them at the moment, is fully armored and easy to drive.
Pyrotechnicians emphasize the advantages of this machine, which allows them to quickly and safely transport explosive materials to their disposal sites. The PM-B machine is made in Ukraine and can hold several tons of ammunition, in particular, large aerial bombs and fragments of missiles, the size of which can reach 2-3 meters.
The Minister of Environmental Protection and Natural Resources of Ukraine, Ruslan Strilets, reports that it would have taken 700 years for Ukraine to be fully demined before, but thanks to a series of government decisions, this estimate was reduced to 70 years.
"But I am sure that with the development of the demining market, the appearance of new equipment and machines, as well as private companies that provide such services, we can potentially talk about a figure of 7 years for the complete demining of Ukraine after our Victory, after the de-occupation of our territories ", he emphasizes.
In particular, the Prime Minister of Ukraine, Denys Shmyhal, announced in September 2023 that almost 40 countries and partner organizations agreed to allocate approximately $250 million, in particular for special equipment for humanitarian demining.
In March 2024, it was announced that the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine plans to clean up 80% of contaminated land and make it safe for use in 10 years.
"The longer our territory is under occupation, the more the enemy replaces it with mines, but we are ready for this work. Our sappers are already waiting to enter de-occupied territories and continue demining. We are ready for this task," emphasized the Head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine.
