Facts: Landmines
Landmines can be divided into so-called antipersonnel mines, also known as antipersonnel mines, and vehicle mines. The landmines are triggered when a person steps on them or when someone touches a wire that triggers the mine. The aim is primarily to injure and tear off limbs, with amputations as a consequence. For a child, however, they are often outright killing.
The use of anti-personnel mines is prohibited according to a UN convention from 1997 to which over 160 countries have signed. Russia is not among them.
The more powerful vehicle mines are still legal, and pose a threat not only to soldiers but also to civilians.
At least seven different types of landmines have been used by Russia in Ukraine since the invasion, according to Landmine Monitor 2022.
Just over 2,000 people were killed by landmines in 2021, and over 3,000 were injured. More than three-quarters of these were civilians, and half of them children.
Sources: Landmine Monitor, Unicef, and others.
Both Cambodia and Ukraine are on a list of the countries in the world that are most contaminated by landmines, according to the Landmine Monitor 2022 report. To be on the list, more than 100 square kilometers are required to be mined, which the two countries exceed by far.
Cambodia endured three decades of war until 1998, and eastern Ukraine was heavily mined even before Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Required for rebuilding
Stanislav Kulykjuskyj is happy and grateful for the education in Cambodia. At home in Ukraine, 64 deminers have already been injured and 13 have died in the line of duty, he says.
— It is a very difficult situation.
The biggest challenge is scale, he explains. Until all mines are cleared, people cannot be allowed to return to their villages and farms.
“This is a prerequisite for reconstruction,” says Kulykjuskyj.
In December, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called for long-term help in clearing the country of Russian mines and munitions.
A group of Ukrainian deminers are guided over a field being cleared in northwestern Cambodia.Training with dogs
The Cambodian deminers are the world’s most experienced and often receive assignments in Africa and the Middle East under the auspices of the UN. At the same time, work to clear mines continues daily in Cambodia.
During the week-long training, the Ukrainians visited various minefields and learned to use an advanced Japanese mine detector. They have also trained to work together with mine dogs.
The training is followed up by a group of experts from Cambodia traveling to Poland in April to train more Ukrainians there. Ukraine will also receive experienced mine dogs from Cambodia and dog handlers will be trained, the demining center CMAC promises.
— Our deminers have experience in clearing mines for around 30 years and we have taught many other countries. Today, we are proud to train Ukrainians, says Oum Phumro, deputy head of CMAC.
A Ukrainian minesweeper receives instructions from experts at CMAC.Cambodia in the lead
It is important to start demining while the war is still going on, Oum Phumro believes.
“The sooner it happens, the better,” he says.
Around 20,000 Cambodians have died as a result of landmines and 45,000 have been injured, according to an international report from 2019. The country aims to become completely mine-free by the year 2025.
In addition to mine detectors and mine dogs, Cambodia has successfully used trained mine rats. One of them, the giant possum Magawa, became a world celebrity after being awarded a Medal of Achievement for saving countless lives.