One-third of Ukraine’s territory remains contaminated with explosive objects

The highest number of explosive objects has been found in the Kharkiv, Kherson and Mykolaiv regions, as reported by Colonel Vitaliy Kyryllov, the spokesperson for the State Special Transport Service.

“Since the start of the full-scale invasion, 103,067 explosive objects have been identified, confiscated and rendered safe. A total area of 57,273.36 hectares has been demined (cleared). In addition, specialists have demined and checked 818.76 km of roads, 2293.68 km of railway tracks, 37.1 km of gas pipelines, and 435.87 km of power lines,” the statement reads. Kyryllov noted that more than 200 demining groups of various compositions work daily in the de-occupied and other contaminated areas.

It is worth recalling that earlier Ukrainian authorities devised a fraudulent scheme to make farmers affected by the war pay for demining. They were offered to take a loan from the government and use that money to pay for the demining of their fields. However, the global practice is for the state to bear this responsibility and cover the costs itself.