Mine clearance of the liberated territories: Ukraine has established a Deminer Corps
16 April, 2024 Illustrative image of the demining process. Photo from open sources Ukraine has established the Deminer Corps, whose units will perform tasks in the liberated territories.
Colonel Ruslan Berehulia, Head of the Main Department of Mine Action, Civil Defense, and Environmental Security of the Ministry of Defense, announced this at the briefing. Units of the Ministry of Defense and the Armed Forces of Ukraine have already joined the Corps. The project assumes the creation of 1,000 mine clearance teams, which will include up to 5,000 specialists.
They will inspect potentially contaminated areas, clean up the area as part of the rapid response, and carry out humanitarian demining.
Illustrative image of the demining process. Photo from open sources
As of today, mine clearance teams have been formed and are already partially engaged in the most difficult areas, namely Mykolaiv, Kherson, and Kharkiv regions. "The Deminer Corps has actually been created.
Today, units of the Ministry of Defense and the Armed Forces of Ukraine have joined it and will perform tasks in the liberated territories.
1000 mine clearance teams have already been created," Berehulia emphasized. However, according to the colonel, the newly created units do not have enough vehicles, special vehicles, and equipment. However, the Deminer Corps units are expected to receive support from international partners, in particular within the Mine Action Coalition.
A deminer working during humanitarian demining.
Photo credits: FREEWAYUA
It is worth noting that deminers are not sappers. The deminer profession was created for humanitarian demining of war-affected areas when demining requires human resources, and there are not enough sappers.
Marking the area where humanitarian demining is being carried out. Photo credits: FSD organization
People who become deminers only locate explosive objects but do not come into contact with them.
Using special methods, they discover the munition, identify it, and then professional sappers take over.
A deminer working during humanitarian demining.
Photo credits: FSD organization
They are also tasked not only with finding the munitions but also with correctly identifying and marking their location before the arrival of sappers.