- Ukraine needs almost US$30 billion for mine clearance
February 27, 2025
Ukraine requires US$29.8 billion to clear the war-affected areas of landmines and other explosive ordnance. Ukraine’s Ministry of Economy, citing an assessment by the Fourth Rapid Damage and Needs Assessment (RDNA4) conducted by the World Bank, the government of Ukraine, the European Union and the United Nations. The Ministry of Economy has lowered the estimated cost ...
- Ukraine: International partners to allocate EUR 700M for demining equipment
February 27, 2025
The long-term plan for developing Ukraine’s demining capacity for 2024-2034 includes an allocation of €700 million from partners for equipment procurement. This was discussed at the 11th Meeting of the Demining Capability Coalition in Vilnius, chaired by Lithuania and Iceland, Ukrinform reports, citing the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine. At the initiative of Lithuania and Ukraine, ...
- Ukraine to establish AI-assisted demining test site
February 25, 2025
Ukraine has begun developing a testing site for the use of artificial intelligence and other advanced technologies in mine action. The Defence Ministry and its partners have identified a location for a testing ground dedicated to demining technologies. Representatives of the Main Directorate of Mine Action, Civil Protection, and Environmental Safety, the United Nations Development Programme, ...
- Government of Japan commits over $500,000 to MAG Vietnam
February 24, 2025
A new grant agreement worth $503,597 USD (equivalent to VND 12.5 billion) was signed today between the Government of Japan, represented by His Excellency Ambassador ITO Naoki, and MAG Vietnam to support mine action efforts in Quang Binh province. Since 2015, funding from Japan has enabled MAG to clear over 25 km² of contaminated land, respond ...
- Cambodia discovers, safely neutralizes another war-left U.S. aerial bomb MK-82
February 21, 2025
A Cambodia’s Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) expert team has found and safely neutralized another war-left U.S.-made MK-82 aerial bomb in southwest Kampong Speu province, a mine clearance chief said on Thursday. Heng Ratana, director general of the Cambodian Mine Action Center (CMAC), said the bomb, weighing more than 230 kilograms, had been discovered in a pit ...
- Vietnam: $1.9 billion Quang Ninh LNG power project calls for mine clearance bids
February 20, 2025
The $1.9 billion Quang Ninh LNG power plant, the first such facility in northern Vietnam, is inviting bids for the mines and explosives clearance package. In a Tuesday announcement, the project investor, Quang Ninh LNG Power JSC, said the bid must be submitted by noon March 18, towards contract signing later this quarter. The contract implementation ...
- Russia continues mine clearance operation in eastern Laos
February 20, 2025
Over the past three months, Lao and Russian military bomb disposal experts have removed 285 items of unexploded ordnance (UXO) from a planned total area of 187,180 square metres in Viengxay district, Huaphan province. So far, 157,887 square metres of land have been surveyed and cleared of UXO, with 29,395 square metres still remaining. The figures ...
- Iraq: Basra sounds alarm, landmine threat escalates, demands action
February 18, 2025
The Basra Human Rights Office has called on the local government to implement key recommendations from the Landmine and War Remnants Victims Committee, urging immediate action to address the “growing threat” of unexploded ordnance, an official said on Tuesday. Mahdi Al-Tamimi, the Office’s director, told Shafaq News that the Basra Provincial Council must activate the committee’s ...
- Syria: Mine casualties persist as UN partners scale up clearance operations
February 17, 2025
“Mine action partners continue to report casualties due to explosive ordnance, and that is happening sadly on an almost daily basis,” Mr. Dujarric explained in a press briefing on Monday in New York. Farmers and shepherds are particularly vulnerable. Since January, more than 60 people have been killed and over 90 injured, many while tending to ...
- Ukraine’s minefields must be a priority at Munich meeting
February 15, 2025
Clearing the deadly debris of war should be a key goal of delegates at the Munich Security Conference, the head of the world’s largest landmine clearance charity, The HALO Trust, said today. HALO CEO and former British General James Cowan: “From the vast grainfields of Ukraine to the former front lines in Syria, removing landmines builds ...
- Azerbaijan: Truck hits landmine in Aghdam
February 14, 2025
A truck struck a landmine in the liberated village of Bash Garvand, Agdam, causing serious damage to the vehicle, Azernews reports. The HOVA truck, which was operating in the area, was affected by the explosion, but no injuries were recorded. The incident underscores Armenia’s ongoing mine threat in Azerbaijan’s liberated territories, which continues to claim lives ...
- Solomon Islands Police Force EOD Team ends operation in Western Province
February 13, 2025
The Royal Solomon Islands Police Force (RSIPF) Explosive Ordnance Disposal Department (EODD) team has successfully concluded a significant operation on Shortland Islands in the Western Province (WP) recently. Supervising Director of the EODD, Senior Sergeant Peter Ririvere, said the team safely located and removed more than 70 unexploded ordnances (UXOs) that have posed a threat to ...
- Ukraine: 640 hectares of agricultural land cleared of mines in January
February 11, 2025
Mine action operators completed the clearance of almost 640 hectares of agricultural land in January 2025. The cost of mine clearance is UAH 20.6 million (about US$494,000), which is compensated by the state. According to the Ministry of Economy of Ukraine, also in January, under 16 previously concluded agreements, operators began clearing land of mines and unexploded ...
- Cambodia: Hit by US aid crunch, demining struggles to continue
February 10, 2025
Although the suspension of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has impacted demining activities in Cambodia, mine clearance operations continue with financial support from the government and partners. Senior Minister Ly Thuch hoped the funds from USAID will resume. “Clearance of landmines, cluster munitions, and other explosive remnants of war (ERW) in Cambodia continues ...
- Cambodia does not receive direct aid from USAID for mine clearance – CMAA
February 8, 2025
The Cambodian government, through the Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority (CMAA), has clarified that the Kingdom does not receive direct funding from USAID. Instead, it receives funding from the Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement of the US State Department, which provides support to demining organisations in Cambodia. A press release from the CMAA, ...
- Vietnam: Mine clearance workers halt operations in war-torn Quang Tri province
February 8, 2025
The Quang Tri Mine Action Center (QTMAC) confirmed on February 8 that approximately 1,000 mine clearance workers from three non-governmental organisations – Mines Advisory Group (MAG), Norwegian People’s Aid/Renew (NPA/RENEW), and PeaceTrees Vietnam (PTVN) – were affected by the US government’s decision. These organizations rely heavily on funding from the US government. In a letter sent ...
- Cambodia: Japan allocates $1.3 mil for mine, UXO clearance
February 6, 2025
The Japanese government has committed $1,302,539 to support mine and unexploded ordnance (UXO) clearance efforts in Cambodia under the Grant Assistance for Japanese NGO Projects. The grant contract was signed between the Japanese Ambassador to Cambodia Atsushi Ueno, and a representative of the recipient organisation during a ceremony at the Japanese Embassy. The funding will support ...
- Slovak Republic and Estonia Provide Additional Contribution to UNMAS in Support of the Iraqi Mine Action Sector
February 6, 2025
The United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS) in Iraq welcomes a new contribution from the Government of the Slovak Republic and the Governemt of Estonia, in support of humanitarian mine action endeavors in Iraq. Both countrites, Slovakia and Estonia have been a consistent supporter of UNMAS Iraq activities in support of sustainable and efficient explosive hazard ...
- Cambodia: China provides $4.4 million in grant aid to support mine clearance efforts
February 6, 2025
Heng Ratana, the Royal Government Delegate overseeing the Cambodian Mine Action Centre (CMAC), announced that the Chinese government had allocated a grant of $4.4 million to facilitate mine clearance efforts across seven provinces in Cambodia. As noted on Heng Ratana’s Facebook page, “On February 5, 2025, the Chinese government made the decision to disburse the third ...
- The Government of Italy Provides Additional Contribution to UNMAS in Support of Mine Action in Iraq
February 5, 2025
The United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS) in Iraq welcomes an additional funding from the Government of Italy, which will contribute to support the Government of Iraq (GoI) to protect civilians from the threat of explosive ordnance (EO) and will enable humanitarian, socio-economic, and reconstruction efforts. The Government of Italy has actively participated in the UNMAS ...
- Cambodia: CMAC, Nigerian team discuss demining work
February 5, 2025
Heng Ratana, Director General of the Cambodian Mine Action Centre (CMAC), met with a Nigerian deminers to discuss work related to demining in Nigeria at CMAC’s office on Monday. During Monday’s visit to the CMAC, the Nigerian reprsentatives wanted to learn about Cambodia’s strong capabilities in mine action. With over three decades of experience in mine ...
- Afghanistan needs $21.9 million for mine clearance
February 3, 2025
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has said that $21.9 million is needed this year to fund mine clearance and provide explosive hazard risk education in Afghanistan. In a statement on Sunday, OCHA warned that 3.3 million Afghans live within one kilometer of mine-contaminated areas, putting them at daily risk. On ...
- These Robots Are Recovering Dumped Explosives From the Baltic Sea
February 3, 2025
In a charming corner of the Bay of Lübeck, within sight of northern Germany’s windswept beaches, specialized clearance teams have been trawling the seafloor for the kind of catch that fishermen in these parts usually avoid—discarded naval mines, torpedoes, stacks of artillery shells, and heavy aerial bombs, all of which have been rusting away for ...
- Lebanon: Chinese peacekeepers pass UN mine, explosive clearing certification
February 2, 2025
All 60 members of the Chinese military engineering contingent from the 23rd Chinese Peacekeeping Force to Lebanon successfully passed the United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS) qualification assessment in a single attempt on Friday. They obtained dual certifications in mine clearance and explosive ordnance disposal (EOD), securing their “minefield pass.” This marked the first UN assessment ...
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