The State Emergency Service has cleared nearly 200,000 hectares of land of mines since the start of the full-scale war

Since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion, units of the State Emergency Service have cleared approximately 200,000 hectares of Ukrainian territory of mines and neutralised over 600,000 explosive devices.

Serhiy Reva, Director of the Department of Mine Action at the State Emergency Service, announced this during a briefing at the Ukraine Media Centre.

According to him, it is currently impossible to clear all contaminated areas due to the occupation of parts of the country and proximity to the front line. Around 133,300 square kilometres remain potentially contaminated, accounting for approximately 20 per cent of Ukraine’s territory.

This primarily concerns temporarily occupied territories and areas where hostilities are ongoing. A significant part of the maritime area also remains contaminated, which is planned to be cleared after the war ends.

Every day, State Emergency Service specialists carry out both scheduled demining work and emergency response tasks. The work covers both land and underwater areas.

2,400 pyrotechnicians are involved in demining, whereas before the full-scale war began there were around 600.

Serhiy Reva noted that Ukraine uses modern demining technologies, including drones and mechanised vehicles manufactured in Ukraine.

“Today, Ukraine can be considered one of the most technologically advanced countries in the field of demining. State Emergency Service operators use not just metal detectors in their work, but even drones and Ukrainian-designed demining vehicles. Not every country can afford to manufacture such vehicles,” he said.