Five things you should know about…explosive ordnance contamination in Ukraine

1. Three years after the escalation of the war, Ukraine is one of the seven most heavily contaminated countries in the world

Three years after Russia’s full-scale invasion of its territory, Ukraine is estimated to be littered with hundreds of thousands of explosive remnants. In April 2024, the country’s National Mine Action Authority (NMAA) reported that 156,000km² of Ukrainian territory had been exposed to conflict and would require a survey¹.  According to the Landmine Monitor 2024, Ukraine is now one of the world’s seven most heavily contaminated countries with potentially more than 100km2 affected².  However, it will only be possible to determine the full extent of the contamination once a comprehensive survey has been conducted.  

Gary Toombs is Technical Director of Global Land Release Operations at HI:

 “Landmines, submunitions and explosive remnants of war, are being found in fields, roads, residential areas, underground, even disguised as ordinary objects and hidden in plain sight. Artillery bombardment and aerial attacks can occur at any time and after initially fleeing their homes for safety, more and more people are now going back to areas contaminated by explosive ordnance. Generations will face the consequences of this contamination”

2. Landmines have been found in 11 of the country's 27 regions

The Landmine Monitor 2024 reports that landmines have been found in 11 of Ukraine's 27 regions: Chernihiv, Dnipropetrovsk, Donetsk, Kharkiv, Kherson, Kyiv, Luhansk, Mykolaiv, Odesa, Sumy and Zaporizhzhia.

Russia has made extensive use of anti-personnel mines in Ukraine since it invaded the country in February 2022. This is the most widespread use of anti-personnel mines in decades. Credible reports indicate that Ukraine, which is a party to the Ottawa Convention, used anti-personnel mines in and around Izium, a city in the Kharkiv’s oblast, in 2022, when the town was under Russian control.

“The use of landmines in Ukraine has already left a devastating legacy of human suffering, hampered post-conflict recovery and endangered future generations. We urge both parties to consider the profound human and moral costs associated with landmines and to respect the principles that prioritise the protection of civilians during armed conflict”, Adele Masson, Senior advocacy and policy officer, HI Ukraine.

3. Kharkiv region has the highest number of accidents

According to the Landmine Monitor, Ukraine was fourth among the countries with the most recorded mine victims in 2023.

According to independent analysts at ACAPS³, the highest number of casualties was recorded in the Kharkiv region, with 21 victims between July and September 2024. The area, some thirty kilometres from the front line, has been exposed to bombing for three years. The contamination here is particularly dense and complex due to the establishment of defensive positions and the regular shifting of the front line.

Countrywide, the Ukrainian authorities report 763 accidents by explosive ordnance claiming 1,099 victims since 2023.

Ukraine had the highest number of annual casualties due to cluster munitions globally for the second year running. Since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by Russia in February 2022, over a thousand cluster munition casualties have been recorded in Ukraine. In 2023, more than 50 cluster munition attacks were reported in Ukraine alone, making the country the epicentre of cluster munition use with devastating and long-lasting consequences for civilians.

4. Explosive remnants of war represent a mortal legacy for millions of civilians

“The war in Ukraine is one of the most cynical illustrations of the ravages of indiscriminate weapons use on civilian populations. These weapons make no distinction between military personnel and civilians,” denounces Adèle Masson.  

Clearance operations are an expensive⁴ long-term process. For instance, there are still 80 million unexploded cluster munitions in Laos, 50 years after the war.

Remnants of war represent a very long-term threat to civilians, directly affecting their access to essential services and their socio-economic development.

Additionally, use of these weapons is banned internationally by the Mine Ban Convention (Ottawa Treaty) and the Cluster Munitions Convention (Oslo Treaty), signed by more than three-quarters of the world's states. Since 1999 and the entry into force of the Ottawa Treaty, the number of victims has fallen from 25,000 in 1999 to 5,000 in 2023, i.e. divided by 5.

Since 2008 and the signing of the Oslo Treaty, the States Parties have destroyed all their stockpiles of cluster munitions, i.e. 1.49 million cluster munitions and 179 million submunitions. The Convention has also led to many countries stopping the production and use of these weapons.

This progress has only been possible thanks to the commitment of the international community to reducing human suffering and protecting civilians during and after conflicts.

HI is calling on all State parties to these pillars of international humanitarian law to firmly denounce any use of these cowardly weapons and to take all necessary measures to preserve these Treaties and their force. If they fail to do so, the already disastrous consequences for civilians in Ukraine will only be exacerbated.

5. Raising awareness and promoting safe behaviour helps reduce the risk of accidents

Most of the children in Kharkiv attend classes in underground schools. Children sit in makeshift classrooms where they learn life-saving lessons that no one should ever need to know.

HI’s teams teach them how to stay safe: "If you see something strange, don’t touch it. Walk away and call 101." These vital lessons help them recognise and avoid dangers like landmines, explosives, and unsafe areas, giving them tools to survive in the most challenging circumstances.

According to HI Ukraine, these awareness-raising sessions are a crucial means of communication to prevent injuries and fatal accidents.

Several times a week, HI’s teams conduct sessions in a variety of locations such as community centres, schools, shelters for displaced people and offices.

They have also started informing inhabitants of newly accessible areas (areas that are now under Ukrainian control again) adapting the strategy to door-to-door sessions in order to reach small groups with life-saving messages in a shorter time.

HI targets host communities, internally displaced people and returnees, including people with disabilities and other humanitarian actors (local and international NGOs, UN agencies, volunteers).

During these explosive ordnance risk education (EORE) sessions, HI’s teams explain to communities how to identify potential threats and dangerous areas, and provide recommendations to correct false beliefs that could lead to unsafe behaviours.

Additionally, they deliver conflict preparedness and protection (CPP) sessions to better prepare and protect civilians against explosive weapons and other conflict related threats in areas where shelling is frequent.

HI’s teams have provided 7,434 EORE/CPP sessions to 165,960 beneficiaries since 2022. Some 4,994 humanitarian actors have been also trained since then. HI provides EORE sessions to children, adults, NGO staff and community focal points in the regions of Kharkiv, Poltava, Sumy, Zaporizjia and Dnipro in the East of Ukraine, and Mykolaiv region in the South.

As part of its victim assistance response, HI also supports people injured due to contact with explosive ordnance and explosive weapons. HI’s social workers identify survivors and refer them to HI services for psychosocial support or rehabilitation care, or to other humanitarian organisations. The aim is also to train community members to relay HI's prevention messages and raise awareness in their communities.

¹ Ukraine Mine Ban Treaty Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2023), page 26.
² LandMine Monitor 2024 page 50.
³ ACAPS, 2024

⁴ Around 34 billion dollars for Ukraine.