Up to 270,000 sq km of land in Ukraine will need to be demined: it will take years – Monastyrskyi

ROMAN PETRENKO — SATURDAY, 18 JUNE 2022, 10:24 AM

Denys Monastyrskyi, the Minister of Internal Affairs in Ukraine, says that as of now, about 270,000 sq km of land will have to be cleared of mines.

Source: Monastyrskyi speaking live on the 24-hour news broadcast, quoted by the press service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine

Direct quote from Monastyrskyi: "If we’re talking about numbers, today we understand that about 270,000 square kilometres need to be cleared. This includes the occupied territories.

In simple terms, the roads between settlements should be cleared of mines, and the settlements, adjacent territories, and territories around settlements should be completely cleared of mines. But complete mine clearance, which includes roads, forest belts, and reservoirs, will take years."

Details: According to him, the Ministry of Internal Affairs is directing state emergency service units to conduct primary rapid mine clearance throughout the year.

Monastyrskyi warned that it is dangerous to swim in most reservoirs in the Kyiv, Kharkiv, Sumy and Chernihiv regions due to the presence of mines.

Note: On 7 June, local people set off a mine in a forest in the Kyiv region. Fortunately no one was killed.

Civilians are not allowed to visit or enter the forest in Kyiv Oblast or the capital itself during the period of martial law.