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Treaty Status | Management & Coordination | Impact (contamination & casualties) | Addressing the Impact (land release, risk education, victim assistance)

Country summary

Ukraine is affected by contamination by mines and explosive remnants of war (ERW) remaining from World Wars I and II, and as a result of the ongoing conflict in the east of the country since 2014. Ukraine also reported that unexploded submunitions contaminated the Donetsk and Luhansk regions.[1] The extent of contamination is unknown.

The contamination in Ukraine is yet to be surveyed although estimates have suggested that about 8% of the lands, covering about 7,000 km², contain or are suspected to contain antipersonnel mines and other ERW. With the support from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and the Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining (GICHD), Ukraine was in the process of establishing a national humanitarian mine action program (not established as of April 2020).

The Law on Mine Action, adopted in January 2019, was not implemented and neither the national mine action authority nor the national mine action center had been established. An amendment to the law was submitted to parliament in February 2020.[2]

Despite efforts to inform populations living along the line of contact, children have continued to be particularly vulnerable to ERW and more widespread risk education campaigns were needed.

There is no centralized victim surveillance system. Despite a decrease in new reported mine/ERW casualties since 2017, the number of new casualties has remained high in eastern Ukraine and available data is likely an underestimation.

As a result of the ongoing conflict, the healthcare system in eastern Ukraine has been suffering from damage to health care infrastructure, a shortage of health care workers, and insufficient medical supplies and equipment. Survivors had free access to emergency medical care, however they often did not have full access to continuing medical care, rehabilitation and functional prosthetics. Psychosocial support remained largely unavailable.

Treaty status

Treaty status overview

Mine Ban Treaty Article 5 clearance deadline

Ukraine’s initial Article 5 clearance deadline was 1 June 2016. In November 2018, Ukraine submitted late its first extension request. In granting the five-year extension, until 1 June 2021, the Committee on Article 5 Implementation noted that Ukraine had not acted in accordance with the agreed process for the submission of extension requests.[3]

In its first extension request, Ukraine stated that its ability to comply with its Article 5 obligations was impeded by the lack of access to the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the Donetsk and Luhansk regions.[4]

Ukraine submitted a second extension request in June 2020, which was approved at the Eighteenth Meeting of States Parties to the Mine Ban Treaty in November 2020, setting a new deadline of 1 December 2023. In its second extension request, Ukraine noted that the ongoing conflict in the country’s eastern regions resulted in further contamination of areas along the contact line. Ukraine also reported that the irregularity and non-selectivity of the use of antipersonnel mines by the armed groups hampered efforts to estimate the scale of contamination.[5]

The OSCE Project-Coordinator in Ukraine (PCU) estimated that Ukraine was unlikely to meet its Mine Ban Treaty Article 5 deadline due to the ongoing conflict.[6] In June 2020, Ukraine stated that it did not have control over territories in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, impeding its ability to clear contaminated areas in these territories, and that the hostilities were causing further contamination along the contact line.[7]

Management and coordination

Mine action management and coordination

Mine action management and coordination overview[8]

In 2013, the Ministry of Defence’s Department of Environmental Safety and Mine Action was tasked with coordinating demining at the national level and serving as the secretariat to the national mine action authority in Ukraine.[9] Several other institutions are also involved in the sector, including the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Security Services, the Ministry of Temporarily Occupied Territories and Internally Displaced Persons, the State Special Transport Services of the Ministry of Defence, the National Police, and the State Border Service.[10]

The State Emergency Service of Ukraine (SESU) is responsible for clearance and it established a “Special Humanitarian Demining Center” in 2015 in Kiev. The center coordinates the pyrotechnical teams—similar to rapid-response Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) teams—involved in technical and non-technical survey (NTS), demining, internal quality control of SESU units, information management, handover of land cleared by SESU to local authorities, and risk education.[11]

The demining center of the Ukrainian armed forces in Kamyanets-Podilsky, focuses on building the military’s capacity for EOD.[12]

Strategies and policies

There is no strategic plan for mine action. The Ministry of Defence develops annual operational plans.[13]

Announced by the Ministry of Defence in February 2016,[14] the State Program for Mine Action in Ukraine for 2017–2021 was on hold due to the pending process with the mine action law.[15]

Resolution 1071 of 13 December 2017, issued by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, approved the State Program for Restoration and Development of Peace in Eastern Regions of Ukraine for 2017–2021. One section of the program foresees the implementation of humanitarian demining of territories and water areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, comprising of survey and clearance of antipersonnel mines and ERW.[16]

Legislation and standards

Ukraine’s mine action legislation entered into force on 22January 2019, but it has not been implemented and the mine action authority and center have not been established. The law was amended and submitted to Parliament for adoption in February 2020. Until the adoption of the amended law, the Ministry of Defence coordinates demining activities, while the UN Mine Action Sub-Cluster coordinates the overall mine action program.[17]

National Mine Action Standards were published in April 2019. They will become binding after the adoption of the amended Law on Mine Action and the establishment of a national mine action authority.[18]

Information management

There are two functioning Information Management System for Mine Action (IMSMA) databases, one managed by SESU and the other by the Ministry of Defence. The databases collect and analyze contamination and land release data from national operators and non-governmental organizations (NGOs).[19] Consolidation of both databases to create a central national IMSMA database is planned once Ukraine adopts its mine action legislation.[20] Data on mine/ERW accidents and casualties, and victim assistance were not being collected.[21] Data on risk education was collected by the Protection Cluster.

Gender and diversity

The OSCE PCU integrated gender and diversity considerations into their activities, in cooperation with the GICHD’s Gender and Mine Action Program (GMAP).[22]

Risk education management and coordination

Risk education management and coordination overview[23]

Coordination

Risk education is coordinated through the UN Mine Action Sub-Cluster, chaired by UNDP.[24]

National Standards and guidelines

There is no national risk education strategy. As of April 2020, Ukraine was in the process of developing national standards for risk education. There was no accreditation process for risk education operators.[25]

Victim assistance management and coordination

Victim assistance management and coordination overview[26]

Laws and policies

Legislation prohibits discrimination against persons with disabilities in employment, education, air travel and other transportation, access to healthcare, and the provision of other state services. These provisions were not effectively applied. Legislation requires that public buildings are accessible to persons with disabilities. Despite the legal requirements, most public buildings remained inaccessible to persons with disabilities. Access to employment, education, healthcare, transportation, and financial services remained difficult.[27]

By law, employers must set aside a quota of 4% of employment opportunities for persons with disabilities. It was reported that many people employed to fill the quota requirement received minimal salaries but did not work at the companies of employment. Legislation also requires employers to take into account the individual needs of employees with disabilities. However, generally these laws were not enforced.[28]

The Law on the Protection of Rights and Freedoms of Internally Displaced People came into effect on 19 November 2014. The law provides UAH880 (approximately US$30) per month for persons with disabilities.[29] In September 2016, the Parliament adopted legislation to harmonize the law with international standards with respect to the rights of persons with disabilities.[30] Under the 2005 Law “On Rehabilitation of Persons with Disabilities in Ukraine,” every person with a disability is entitled to receive physical rehabilitation services.[31]

Persons with disabilities in eastern Ukraine did not receive appropriate care.[32]

Impact

Contamination

Contamination overview[33]

* A further 14,000km² suspected to be contaminated in non-government-controlled territory. The exact size of contaminated areas could not be determined due to the ongoing conflict.

Note: ERW=explosive remnants of war; and IED=improvised explosive device.

Landmine contamination

Ukraine was affected by residual contamination of mines and other explosive ordnance, mostly as a result of World Wars I and II. Ministry of Defence engineering units partially cleared affected areas in the mid-1970s, but 32 former firing ranges covering 1,500km² remain contaminated with ERW.[34]

Ukraine is also contaminated by antipersonnel mines as a result of the ongoing conflict which broke out in 2014 in the Crimean Peninsula and in the east of the country in the Luhansk and Donetsk regions (oblasts). Mines have been used in the resultant armed conflicts.[35] Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) and antipersonnel mines were reported to be planted in populated areas and near civilian infrastructure.[36] IEDs used included booby-traps and devices, especially hand grenades, with tripwires.[37]

Preliminary estimates showed that about 8% of the lands, totaling up to 7,000km², in government-controlled areas in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, contain or are suspected to contain antipersonnel mines and other ERW, including IEDs.[38] In addition, 14,000km² in non-government-controlled areas were also suspected to be mine-contaminated.[39] It is further indicated that 15–20% of the contamination was from mines, while the rest was from ERW.[40] The heaviest mine and ERW contamination is believed to be inside the 15km buffer zone between the belligerent parties, but access to this area for survey and clearance operations has been severely limited.[41]

The explosive hazard contamination in eastern Ukraine was estimated to impact around two million people.[42] Civilians living along the contact line were unable to engage in agricultural activities and access to some villages was restricted. The contamination, or suspicion of contamination also poses a threat to people crossing the contact line. Maintenance and repair of vital civilian infrastructure facilities has been impeded by the presence of mines and ERW.[43] The collection of firewood was reported to have resulted in many fatalities and injuries.[44] Access to farmlands, hospitals, and schools was also impeded.[45] Explosive ordnance poses a humanitarian risk to internally displaced people (IDPs) and returning refugees.[46]

Cluster munitions remnant contamination

The extent of contamination from cluster munition remnants in Ukraine is not known. Cluster munitions used in the conflict have included surface-fired Smerch (Tornado) and Uragan (Hurricane) cluster munition rockets, which contain 9N210 and 9N235 submunitions.[47] (See Ukraine’s Cluster Munition Ban Policy profile for details.)

Ukraine has reported that many unexploded submunitions contaminated the Donetsk and Luhansk regions.[48] The most intensive use of cluster munitions was in and around the city of Debalcevo, in Donetsk region.[49]

Casualties

Casualties overview[50]

Note: ERW=explosive remnant of war.

Casualties in 2019: details

The 324 casualties identified in 2019 was similar to the 325 casualties identified in 2018, which was a significant decrease from previous years.[51] Casualty data peaked in 2015 and 2016 with 706 and 785 new casualties respectively. The Monitor recorded 2,727 mine casualties (941 killed and 1,786 injured) from 2014 through 2019.

There is no centralized database for the collection of casualty data.[52] The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) collects only conflict-related civilian casualty data. Through its pilot project on data collection, the Ministry of Defence also collects data on civilian casualties in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, including mine/ERW casualties. The database was however poorly populated. In 2019, the Ministry of Temporarily Occupied Territories was developing a mine accident and casualty database and collecting data on civilians killed or injured by mines/ERW.[53]

The Monitor has recorded at least 4,714 mine/ERW casualties (2,719 killed and 1,995 injured)in Ukraine to the end of 2019. The UN reported that more than 1,500 civilians were killed in Ukraine between 1945 and 1995 in mine/ERW incidents. Another 130 people were killed during clearance operations in the same period.[54]

The then named Ministry of Emergency Situations (MES, since December 2012 operating as the State Emergency Service of Ukraine) reported that between 1996 and 2008 there were 229 ERW casualties (100 killed and 129 injured), including 59 children, due to “handling of devices.”[55]

The OHCHR has recorded over 1,000 civilian mine/ERW casualties between April 2014 and December 2019.[56] The Danish Demining Group (DDG) recorded 1,582 mine/ERW casualties from open sources between June 2014 and October 2018,[57] and the HALO Trust recorded 2,103 casualties between 2014 and 2019, based on open sources and security reports. The HALO Trust however noted that “due to a lack of reliable information from the non-government-controlled areas, the available data is likely an underestimation of the scale of the problem.”[58]

Cluster munition casualties[59]

The Monitor has recorded 76 cluster munition casualties in Ukraine; 72 casualties during attacks and four due to the detonation of unexploded submunitions.[60]

Addressing the impact

Mine action

Operators and service providers

Clearance operators

Note: IED=improvised explosive device.

Clearance

Land release overview (as of December 2019)[61]

Note: ERW=explosive remnants of war.

Land release: landmines

Humanitarian demining operations in the safely accessible areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions are conducted according to the annual plan developed by the Ministry of Defence and interested authorities, which details clearance and survey priorities for each operator.[62] In addition to NTS and technical survey of suspected hazardous areas (SHAs), the main goals of the plan remained the demining of populated areas, security during rehabilitation of infrastructure, clearance of agricultural areas and of critical infrastructures (power lines, water and gas pipe infrastructure, thermal power plants, roads and railways).[63]

The overall extent of mine contamination in Ukraine cannot be reliably estimated until surveys will be completed. In its 2019 Article 7 report, Ukraine noted that NTS conducted by NGOs have identified mined areas in Bakhmut, Lyman, Sloviansk, and Volnovakha districts in Donestsk region, and in Popasna and Stanichno-Luhansk districts in Luhansk region.[64]

Since the outbreak of fighting in eastern Ukraine, clearance of mines and ERW has been undertaken by both Ukrainian government authorities and separatist groups,[65] and international clearance operators have subsequently begun clearance in government-controlled areas.

The HALO Trust cited the lack of an explosives license as the main limiting factor for its program in Ukraine, it had to rely on states institutions to destroy all mine/ERW found.[66]

The Swiss Foundation for Mine Action (Fondation Suisse de déminage, FSD) stopped its survey and clearance activities in Ukraine in 2019 due to a lack of funding.[67] In 2020, FSD started a new two-year clearance and survey project which will end on 30 June 2022.[68]

It was reported that national operators lacked up-to-date technical equipment for mine clearance.[69]

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) provided training courses to demining and EOD specialists on surveying and clearing contaminated areas.[70]

In 2019, about 1.7km² was released through clearance.[71] Additional land was cleared and awaiting quality control before it could be released.[72] In addition, 70km² of battle area were reportedly reduced through technical survey. Data on land cancelled through NTS in 2019 could not be provided as there was no firm data on the size of confirmed and SHAs.[73]

Land release: cluster munition remnants

During clearance and EOD spot tasks operations in 2019, the HALO Trust removed five cluster munitions (9N210).[74]

Deminer safety

There were reports of shooting at deminers of the State Emergency Services of Ukraine who were operating near the line of contact in the east of Ukraine.[75]

Risk education

Operators and service providers

Risk education operators[76]

In addition to these risk education operators, a number of Ukrainian NGOs also conducted risk education.[77] As the entity coordinating risk education in Ukraine, the UN Mine Action Sub-Cluster organized risk education activities around the International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action in April 2019.[78] In 2020, the UNDP launched a mine awareness project aiming at enhancing mine risk prevention.[79]

There was no evaluation of risk education efforts in Ukraine.[80] Risk education operators reported quarterly on their activities to the Protection Cluster.[81] The HALO Trust conducted knowledge, attitudes and practices survey before and after its risk education sessions.[82]

Beneficiary numbers

Beneficiaries of risk education in 2019[83]

The ICRC and the Ukrainian Red Cross reported a total of 30,940 beneficiaries in both government-controlled and non-government-controlled areas, 60% of whom were children.[84]

The number of risk education beneficiaries totaled 167,698 in 2019.[85] Almost 60% of beneficiaries were children.[86]

Despite current efforts by mine action actors to provide risk education, a study by DDG suggested that “there is a need for more widespread risk education campaigns.” According to this study, there is a higher proportion of incidents caused by the handling of ERW than by encounters with mines, especially among children casualties.[87]

Implementation

Target groups

Risk education target groups are school children and internally displaced persons. Individuals who cross the contact line at official crossing points are also informed about the risk posed by explosive ordnance.[88]

In 2020, FSD was planning to target specifically persons traveling from non-government-controlled areas to government-controlled areas.[89] The HALO Trust primarily targeted working age men as they constituted the majority of mine/ERW casualties, as well as women who represented a high proportion of victims of mine/ERW incidents while crossing the contact line. Other groups targeted by the HALO Trust’s risk education activities included: children, due to their natural curiosity; motorists, due to the high level of contamination with antivehicle mines in Ukraine; and elderly and persons with disabilities.[90] The ICRC reported targeting populations in areas most impacted by mine/ERW contamination, in particular adult men. Children, as the second most affected group, were also targeted by the ICRC and the Ukrainian Red Cross risk education activities.[91]

In eastern Ukraine, the 15km buffer zone from the contact line disproportionately affected elderly people. Insufficient pensions forced them to continue to cultivate plots of land, pick mushrooms, and collect firewood in areas contaminated with mines and ERW.[92]

In Ukraine, risk education targets mostly populations living within 5km of the line of contact in government-controlled areas, leaving other affected communities without such critical information.[93] In particular, risk education operators do not have access to persons leaving on the eastern side of the line of contact, many of whom have to regularly cross it to collect pensions or access other public goods.[94]

Delivery methods

Most risk education was delivered using small printed media. The HALO Trust used pamphlets, booklets, and other materials and placed posters in visible places in schools and villages. Games, puzzles and coloring materials were used during school sessions with younger children.[95] The HALO Trust also transferred risk education materials including leaflets, posters, and stickers to police departments in Donetsk and Luhansk for further dissemination.[96]

DDG had a pilot project to use web and mobile phone platforms to collect information about hazards caused by unexploded ordnance.[97]

FSD implemented a small project in specialized education institutions for children with disabilities. This included risk education using a sign language trainer.[98]

Marking

In April 2019, the government of Ukraine approved regulations that standardized the marking of hazardous areas.[99]

Victim Assistance

Providers and activities

Victim assistance operators[100]

Note: IDPs=Internally displaced people.

Major Developments in 2019

Needs assessment

DRC-DDG, with the support of UNICEF, conducted a needs assessment of child mine/ERW survivors in 2019, in government-controlled areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. Due to the limited timeframe of the project, it was not an in-depth needs assessment and it recommended the conduct of a more thorough needs analysis.[101]

Medical care and rehabilitation

As a result of the ongoing conflict, the healthcare system in eastern Ukraine is suffering from damage to health care infrastructure, a shortage of health care workers, and insufficient medical supplies and equipment.[102]

Survivors had free access to emergency medical care, however they often did not have full access to continuing medical care, rehabilitation, and functional prosthetics. Access to medical care was particularly difficult for survivors living in rural areas, where most mine/ERW incidents occurred, and they often could not afford to travel to urban centers.[103]

The ICRC provided first-aid training, ambulances repair, surgical supplies, medical equipment to hospitals on both sides of the line of contact. It also gave cash assistance to cover hospital expenses as well as repairs or upgrades of 30 health facilities along the line of contact.[104]

As public health facilities in Ukraine’s conflict-affected regions gradually resumed services, Doctors Without Borders (Médecins Sans Frontières, MSF) began transferring patients to the Ministry of Health for treatment. By the end of 2019, all were provided with care through the public health system.[105]

A cohesive and coordinated rehabilitation system was lacking. Physical rehabilitation facilities were located in districts and cities, and access for mine/ERW survivors living in conflict-affected rural areas was limited. No assistance was provided for transportation.[106] Child mine/ERW survivors often received cosmetic rather than functional prostheses.[107] UNICEF reported that “families often lack the means or ability to provide children with the assistive devices they need.”[108] The Donetsk and Luhansk regions suffered from a lack of qualified specialists and equipment to assist mine/ERW survivors.[109]

The ICRC provided mobility aids, physical rehabilitation equipment, and supplies, and supported the training of four orthopedic technicians.[110]

The USAID’s Leahy War Victims Fund continued to support the UCP Wheels for Humanity, which provided training for rehabilitation personnel, assistive technologies, and medical and physical rehabilitation for persons with disabilities—many of whom were injured in the ongoing conflict.[111] The UPC Wheels for Humanity project launched in 2019, Strengthening Rehabilitation Services within Health Systems (SRSHS), aimed to improve rehabilitation services and increase access to those services in Ukraine. The SRSHS project aligned with the World Health Organization Rehabilitation 2030 Agenda.[112]

The ITF supported psychosocial rehabilitation for severely traumatized children from eastern Ukraine (Donbass region) on the Slovenian coast with the support of the Youth Health and Summer Resort of the Slovenian Red Cross. ITF also continued to support physical rehabilitation for one conflict casualty.[113] The ITF provided equipment to the Ukrainian Research Institute for Prosthetics and Rehabilitation.[114]

The NATO Trust Fund provided for physical rehabilitation, including prosthetics and vocational rehabilitation for injured soldiers; support to the rehabilitation sector through the provision of equipment, training of physical rehabilitation and psychological professionals, support to the development of academic curricula for prosthetists, and provision of psychological support to former military personnel, it also continued to support physical rehabilitation for one conflict casualty at the University Rehabilitation Institute of the Republic of Slovenia in Ljubljana.[115]

Socio-economic and psychosocial inclusion

Psychosocial support remained largely unavailable.[116] Local and international NGOs provided psychological and psychosocial support on request to survivors.

Efforts have been made in Ukraine to make education more inclusive of persons with disabilities. The Concept of Inclusive Schools was adopted in 2010. Social and financial assistance to survivors was lacking.[117] ICRC supported social inclusion through sporting events.[118] The ITF supported psychosocial rehabilitation for severely traumatized children from eastern Ukraine (Donbass region) on the Slovenian coast with the support of the Youth Health and Summer Resort of the Slovenian Red Cross.[119]