Demining needs for current year reach over $397M - Pavliuk

According to the World Bank, the needs for demining the territories of Ukraine for the current year amount to more than $397 million. First Deputy Minister of Defense of Ukraine Oleksandr Pavliuk said this in an interview with Ukrinform.

"The estimated cost of the full range of humanitarian demining activities is USD 37 billion. The needs for the current year alone are more than USD 397 million, according to the World Bank. This cost is not final, but we rely on it in our activities. Although, in the end, the amount may either decrease significantly or increase," Pavliuk stated.

He also noted that these needs are currently being considered for next year's budget. First, the budget is needed to create and equip new units that will strengthen the Ministry of Defense's demining capabilities. He said that the planning of expenditures in this area is not linear, meaning that the number of territories does not equal the amount of money. The budget for demining a particular area depends on many factors: from the area of the territory, type of soil, presence of vegetation to, most importantly, the intensity of Russia's hostilities in a particular area.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, Ukraine has approved a plan to demine agricultural land in nine regions affected by military operations. In total, more than 470,000 hectares of land are subject to survey and, if necessary, demining.

As of May, about 70,000 hectares of agricultural land have already been surveyed as part of humanitarian demining in Ukraine.