Ukraine's Internal Affairs Ministry claims demining in war-torn nation can take 5-10 years

Amid the escalating war between Russia and Ukraine, the Ukrainian Ministry of Internal Affairs has said that mine clearance in Ukraine can take five to 10 years. The spokeswoman of Ukraine's Ministry of Interior Affairs, Alyona Matveeva, said that the main efforts of demining work are being carried out in Chernihiv, Sumy, Kharkiv, Zaporizhzhia, Mykolaiv, Donetsk and Luhansk regions where the hostilities continue. According to Matveeva, 274 settlements have been cleared of mines and ammunition in Kyiv, Chernihiv and Sumy regions. 

"Demining requires coastal waters of the Azov and Black Seas, the area of ​​pollution, which can be up to 19 thousand square meters. km. Full demining of Ukraine, taking into account international experience, can take from 5 to 10 years," Alyona Matveeva said in the statement. 

The Ukrainian Ministry of Internal Affairs said that the demining has been carried out in 229 settlements in Kyiv, 27 in Chernihiv, and 18 in the Sumy region. In addition, 809 km of highways, 127 km of railways and 1,197 infrastructure facilities have been cleared of mines. Furthermore, the Ukrainian authorities have demined 28 kilometres of gas pipelines and more than 1,000 kilometres of power lines. According to the statement released by the Ukrainian Ministry of Internal Affairs, around 80% of explosive devices have been seized or neutralised so far in the Kyiv region. 

The spokesperson of Ukraine's Ministry of External Affairs, Alyona Matveeva, noted that the specialists continue to be involved in direct demining while Ukrainians can make efforts to reduce the consequences of "mine contamination", in particular, by visiting those places that have been tested by pyrotechnicians. Alyona Matveeva said that Ukraine's Ministry of Internal Affairs has set up the International Coordination Center for Humanitarian Demining, and European nations have also started joining Ukraine in humanitarian demining. The war between Russia and Ukraine which began on February 24 continues for 111th day. As the war between Russia and Ukraine escalates, the Ukrainian Defence Ministry claimed that around 32,500 Russian troops have lost their lives since the onset of the invasion on February 24.

Image: AP