OPINION: Every Action Has a Purpose: The Importance of Training Experts for Ukraine’s Mine Clearance

It is critically important for deminers to undergo continuous training and have access to the latest methods and technologies, as even a slight gap in knowledge can cost lives.

Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022 pushed Ukrainians to accelerate innovation in the defense sector. In response to existential threats, Ukrainian society has achieved remarkable advancements in a short time. However, the pursuit of more effective solutions extends beyond drones and howitzers to a less-publicized but equally important area – demining and explosive ordnance disposal (EOD).

Ukraine is now one of the most contaminated countries in the world due to unexploded ordnance (UXO). As a result of Russia’s full-scale invasion, approximately 139,000 square kilometers (53,668 square miles) – around 23% of Ukraine’s total territory – are affected. Landmines, submunitions, and other explosives are being found in fields, roads, residential areas, underground, and even disguised by Russian forces as ordinary objects hidden in plain sight. 

The Landmine Monitor 2024 reports that landmines have been discovered in 11 of Ukraine’s 27 administrative regions.

In demining, Ukraine faces a challenge similar to other security sectors: a shortage of qualified personnel. The country has almost doubled its deminers from approximately 2,000 in 2022 to at least 4,000 deminers today, but that number falls short of the need. 

Demining is also complicated by the emergence of new types of mines that are harder to detect. While existing specialists are familiar with traditional Soviet anti-personnel and anti-tank mines and know how to neutralize them, new challenges continue to arise as Russia develops increasingly deadly combinations of ordnance, including drone-dropped munitions that fail to detonate. In such conditions, it is critically important for deminers to undergo continuous training and have access to the latest methods and technologies, as even a slight gap in knowledge can cost lives.

Currently, the State Emergency Service of Ukraine cooperates with more than 30 international organizations and companies in the field of demining, such as the Canadian diaspora NGO Mriya Aid, which facilitates the training of specialists from state institutions and has so far prepared more than 220 professionals engaged in demining. Among them are both experienced sappers and those who are just beginning their careers in this field. 

The training of Ukrainian men and women takes place at MAT Kosovo – a globally renowned center for sapper training that operates in accordance with International Mine Action Standards (IMAS). The training program, organized by the Canadian organization, stands out for its focus on the highest levels of IMAS EOD certification: 3, 3+, and 3T. Certification to these levels enables demining professionals to lead teams, conduct training, share their expertise in Ukraine, apply the highest safety protocols to demining, handle the most complex types of munitions, and operate in diverse conditions.

Through this work, it became evident that Ukraine’s conditions differ from those of other countries and require unique solutions. 

While Ukraine’s geographic diversity is an asset in peacetime, it presents significant challenges for demining operations, requiring a tailored approach. Explosive ordnance disposal work varies across urban areas, fields, forests, and steppes. The Chernihiv region in northern Ukraine remains one of the most heavily mined areas. According to Lieutenant Colonel Serhiy Bilevych, a senior instructor at the Mine Action Centre (MAC) in Chernihiv, intense shelling and Russian attacks have left munitions scattered across the region, including Shahed drones, rockets, and artillery shells. While much of the area has been cleared, large sections of forest remain uncleared. 

In the south, the fertile lands of the Kherson region were heavily mined during the Russian occupation and relentless shelling. Intensive efforts are underway to restore these lands for agricultural use. Radmyla Volovetska from the Mine Action Centre of the Special State Transport Service notes that while machine-operated mine clearance speeds up the process on flat surfaces, areas like roadsides, forests, and ravines still require specialized, highly trained sapper experts performing manual demining tasks. 

“It was in Kosovo where I truly understood the details,” Volovetska said. “For example, how and why grass needs to be cut in a specific way to avoid triggering hidden tripwires, or how to carefully spread grass with specific movements to ensure safety in that procedure. Every action has a purpose.”

The same is true for sensitive infrastructure and urban areas. Even where drones, robots and other technology can assist with manual demining, the higher levels of training and certification to IMAS EOD enable proper planning, oversight, quality control and careful intervention requiring human presence, decision-making and EOD task completion. The latest developments in Ukraine’s defense sector, including ground robotic systems, have not yet reached the technological level required to ensure effective landmine clearance.

Ukraine’s demining efforts also extend to the Black Sea, a key transportation corridor now contaminated with naval mines and other UXO. 

Reports indicate that Russian forces have placed mines in civilian shipping lanes, including the “humanitarian corridor” Ukraine established for grain exports. However, Ukraine faces a shortage of personnel trained for underwater demining. 

As Oleksandr Kovhan, the head of the diving service at the Chernihiv Training Center, said: “there may be as few as 30 underwater deminers in Ukraine. There are many professionals, but none have received specialized international training abroad.” 

Underwater demining is considered twice as dangerous as land-based operations due to poor visibility, which makes detecting threats more difficult. Additionally, far fewer mechanical and technological tools exist for underwater demining compared to land-based methods. 

Amid a shortage of qualified personnel in the demining sector, traditionally dominated by men, the role of women has become increasingly important. Women bring strong attention to detail and teamwork, qualities that are valuable in this field. Currently, more than 35 Ukrainian women — over 10% of all participants in the demining training program organized by the Canadian Mriya Aid — have received IMAS certification and are actively participating in demining operations.

The work of demining professionals is inherently dangerous. However, their activities in the conditions of active warfare, under the constant threat of attacks, face even bigger challenges. At times, demining teams and international organizations have been directly targeted by Russian missile and drone strikes, as was the case with the Swiss Foundation for Mine Action (FSD) in Kharkiv in July 2024. More recently, in February 2025, Vadym Yeliseev – an IMAS EOD Level 3 sapper funded by Mriya Aid – was killed alongside colleagues in a Russian attack in Mykolaiv.

Despite these threats, this vital work must continue. According to forecasts, clearing Ukraine of mines and UXO will take decades, and he latest estimates suggest that demining the country will cost around $29.8 billion. Although the efforts of enthusiasts like civil society organizations, as well as government funding from allies, including the International Demining Coalition, are extremely important, the scale of Ukraine’s contamination with explosive ordnance requires the involvement of as many participants as possible, particularly representatives from the private sector. 

In June 2024, the Ukrainian government took a significant step toward addressing the country’s landmine crisis by adopting the National Mine Action Strategy. This document aims to develop an effective management system for mine action, making Ukraine’s legislation among the most advanced globally in this sector. The strategy also facilitates the attraction of donors and international support, which is crucial during wartime.​ 

As Lesya Granger, Chair and CEO of the Canadian organization Mriya Aid, stated: “Coordinated efforts nationally in Ukraine and internationally with donors in the areas of quality training and innovative technologies will result in the fastest and safest path and process to demine Ukraine.”

The views expressed in this opinion article are the author’s and not necessarily those of Kyiv Post.