Bohdan Drapyaty: Ukraine will use Cambodia's experience in the field of mine prevention
This was emphasized by the Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine during a working trip to the Kingdom of Cambodia. The delegation also included Deputy Minister of Economy of Ukraine Igor Bezkaravainy, representatives of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the State Emergency Service. Also during the visit, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to the Socialist Republic of Vietnam Oleksandr Haman took part in the events. At the invitation of the Japanese Agency for International Cooperation (JICA), the Ukrainian delegation was able to get acquainted with the experience of Cambodian colleagues in the field of humanitarian demining.
The Kingdom of Cambodia has been devaluing its lands for more than 30 years. For better coordination and more effective results in the state, the Cambodian Mine Action and Victim Assistance Authority (SMA) monitors and coordinates processes, and the practical stage is in the area of responsibility of the Cambodian Mine Action Centre (SMAS), the largest national mine operator.
During the visit to the Cambodian Mine Action and Relief Agency, the Ukrainian delegation met with the First Vice President of the SMA Lee Thuch, who expressed words of support for Ukraine in the ongoing brutal war.
“Cambodia used to be known as a country with a bitter history of decades of war, which wreaked havoc on people and the country, made it perhaps the most mined country in the world. But we managed to achieve peace and national unity, and then build a system to quickly restore the development capabilities of the state. And demining on this path is the most important stage,” said Li Thuch.
An extended meeting of delegates from Ukraine, Japan and Cambodia took place on the basis of the Cambodian Mine Action Centre (SMAS). The practical stage of demining the country was discussed. According to SMAS Director General Han Ratan, the Center was established in 1992 while fighting. In 2002, SMAS began cooperation with the Japan Agency for International Development (JICA), which supports the capacity of Cambodian sappers in mining activities and the recovery of the country.
In more than 30 years of humanitarian demining, Cambodian sappers have cleared more than 3,000 square kilometers of mined territory, removing more than 4 million mines and shells of various types.
“In the area of our responsibility are training and training of sappers, direct demining of territories, educational activities among the population, restoration of infrastructure, assistance to victims of explosions on explosive objects, in particular prosthetics. We have come a long way to building this system. We started from scratch, developed mining methods ourselves, tested various equipment. And we will be very happy if our experience proves useful to you,” said Hen Ratan, Director General of the Cambodian Mine Action Centre.
Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine Bohdan Drapiaty stressed that as a result of hostilities, about 156 thousand square kilometers of Ukrainian lands remain mined as a result of hostilities. The sapper units of the State Emergency Service and the police in the absolute majority of cases carry out operational demining, working during stabilization measures after the de-occupation of settlements or responding to citizens' requests.
Ukrainian sappers have their own practical experience, but constantly improve their skills and learn to work on different types of equipment. In particular, with the support of the Japanese Agency for International Development (JICA), pyrotechnics of the CIS of Ukraine conducted training in Cambodia in the winter of 2023, and in the summer Cambodian colleagues conducted training for Ukrainian sappers in Poland.
In addition to meetings with officials and discussions of the demining strategy, members of the Ukrainian delegation got acquainted with the practical work of SMAS specialists.
In Kampongchnang Province, they visited the Technical Institute for Mine Action (TIMA), which was established in 1997. During this time, more than 35 thousand trainings and upgrades of migrant workers and sappers were conducted here. In addition, on the basis of the institute there are separate training centers for dogs and rats involved in demining the territory.
An important component of the full cleaning of the territory from explosive objects is underwater demining. Diver divers depopulate Cambodia's main waterway and one of the world's largest rivers, the Mekong. The submersible demining unit was founded in 2013 and currently has more than 100 personnel, 20 of whom are divers.
Also, Cambodian colleagues demonstrated their experience in demining agricultural land using the example of two regions. Battambang Province saw the practical operation of mechanized demining machines and the use of the latest hand-held devices to detect explosive objects produced and transferred by the Japanese side. And in the province of Siemreap, a combination of different demining methods, including trained dogs, was demonstrated to fully monitor and confirm the clearance of the area.
At the end of the working visit to Cambodia, the parties discussed the results of the meetings and the possibility of introducing the experience gained into Ukrainian realities.
“Supporting mining activities for the sake of peace is our main goal. JICA understood Cambodia's challenges at the beginning of its recovery journey. And now SMAS is the oldest national operator in the world that still continues mining operations. But mining activities are not only a practical component. Important are management, management system. 25 years of our participation in the process of formation of SMAS as a professional body confirms this. We know the challenges in Ukraine now and are ready to deepen our cooperation in the long term,” said Eri Komukai, Senior Adviser at the Japan Agency for International Cooperation (JICA).
In turn, Deputy Minister of Economy of Ukraine Igor Bezkaravaynyi noted that the many years of hard work of Cambodian mining specialists has achieved the main goal of significantly reducing the number of casualties caused by explosions on mines and shells.
“This is a really important achievement to be proud of: saved lives, restoration of agriculture, opportunities for business development. We are now experiencing a similar stage that Cambodia went through at the beginning of its reconstruction journey. Ukraine is facing one of the biggest challenges in its history. The scale of the problem of land contamination by mines and unexploded ordnance is enormous. But I am convinced that every tragedy is also a lesson, and a problem can be turned into an opportunity. So now we have an incredible chance to create these opportunities — of which I believe there are many more. Opportunities for exchange of experience and knowledge in humanitarian demining, creation of innovative projects, etc. Your effective experience gives us confidence that we will be able to build a constructive management system of the demining process and clear Ukrainian territories in a relatively short time. We thank the Governments of Japan and Cambodia for their support, assistance and expansion of cooperation,” said Igor Bezkaravaynyy.
The contribution of Cambodia to accelerating the demining of Ukraine was also noted by the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to the Socialist Republic of Vietnam Oleksandr Haman:
“Cambodia is an example for many Southeast Asian countries in upholding the fundamental principles of the UN Charter, condemning Russian aggression against Ukraine. Thank you for everything you do for us. This is critically important in the current environment. You help save lives in Ukraine and make a great contribution to a peaceful future. Our cooperation definitely needs to be strengthened.”
SMAS specialists, according to the assurance of the Cambodian side, will continue to provide training for Ukrainian sappers, train them to use modern equipment for demining. In addition, they will share the experience of training pyrotechnic units and their four-legged assistants.
“The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine is now working on strengthening the system of training sappers. The Interregional Center for Mine Action is already being relocated from Kharkiv to a safer region. We have plans to build a new infrastructure for training and upskilling pyrotechnicians. Minister Igor Klymenko identified this as one of the priorities in the work of our department for this year. Therefore, the experience of SMAS — the Cambodian Mine Prevention Center with its integrated approach is useful to us. The better the specialists are trained, the better they will work. And, most importantly, we will have fewer casualties among both sappers and civilians. Separately, I will note the training center for training dogs. The use of animals in mining shows effective results, so we want to develop this direction in our country. In Cambodia, both dogs and rats are used for demining. But we in Ukraine will focus exclusively on dogs. I express my gratitude to the Government and people of Cambodia, I admire your hard work. Thank you to the Government of Japan and JICA for organizing the visit and strengthening our mine-fighting capabilities. Demining is not an easy process, but with the help of international partners we will be able to make Ukrainian land safe again,” Bohdan Drapyaty summed up.
Department of Communications of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine
