About 30% of Ukraine’s territory is contaminated with explosives and mines, Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs of Kyiv Bohdan Drapyaty said on Thursday, who also said that the government is working on creating a specialized mine detection and disposal center.
“Currently, about 30% of the territory of our state is contaminated with explosive objects, which is equivalent to 174 thousand square kilometers,” the deputy minister said in a televised speech.
Drapyatyi explained that specialists from various structures of the Ministry of Internal Affairs are working to demine all affected areas controlled by Kyiv. The work to remove mines and other explosive devices, the official added, is focused on those territories that Ukraine liberated after the occupation by Russia, EFE and Agerpres agencies report.
When asked how long it will take the Ukrainian government to demine the entire territory of the country, the deputy minister clarified that the answer will be known only after Ukraine expels all Russian troops from the territories occupied by them.
Landmines continue to cause casualties in the liberated territories
Since the beginning of the war, the authorities have cleared 1,000 square kilometers of Ukrainian territory, which required the disposal of approximately 520,000 explosive devices.
The Ukrainian government has launched an awareness campaign so that residents of the liberated territories do not approach suspicious objects and inform the police about their discovery.
This week, two people died as a result of the explosion of two anti-personnel mines in the Kharkiv region in northeastern Ukraine, which was almost completely liberated by Kyiv forces last October.
Four other people were killed earlier this month in the same province after the car they were in blew up on an anti-tank mine.
During his visit to Ukraine on Wednesday, Croatian Defense Minister Mario Banozic offered his government cooperation with Kyiv in demining Ukraine. Croatia is making ongoing efforts to clear its territory of mines laid during the Balkan War.
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Source: Hot News
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