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Turkey

Last Updated: 17 December 2012

Mine Action

Contamination and Impact

Mines

Turkey is contaminated with antipersonnel and antivehicle mines, as well as improvised explosive devices (IEDs). Mines were laid in 1956–1959 along 510km of the border with Syria, and on some sections of the borders with Armenia, Iran, and Iraq to prevent illegal border crossings and to create a barrier around security installations.[1]According to Turkey, all the mines previously laid along its borders with Bulgaria, Georgia, and Greece have been cleared.[2]

Turkey reported in 2012 that a total of 977,163 mines remained to be cleared from its territory at the end of 2011, a modest 244 less than at the end of the previous year. Most mines were along the border with Syria (613,715 mines), followed by the borders with Iran (194,755), Iraq (69,033) and Armenia (21,856). Turkey reported another 77,804 mines were laid at various locations inside the country. Compared with the situation at the end of 2012,most of the reduction was in mines inside Turkey.[3] A notice of intention published by the Ministry of National Defense in March 2011 to call tenders for clearance of minefields on the Syrian border said the minefields totaled 212,000km2.[4]

Landmines were also laid by government forces during the 1984–1999 conflict with the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (Partiya Karkerên Kurdistan, PKK) in the southeast of the country. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, these mines have been progressively cleared since 1998.[5] Turkey’s Armed Forces General Staff reported finding 92 PKK mines in the first seven months of 2011, but it did not specify whether they were victim-activated devices or command-detonated.[6]

During the 1974 occupation of northern Cyprus, Turkish armed forces laid minefields to create a barrier on the northern side of the buffer zone which divides the island and also in areas adjacent to the buffer zone. The UN identified 26 minefields laid by Turkish forces in the buffer zone.[7] Cyprus reported in 2011 that one minefield remained in the buffer zone after clearance of 78 mined areas and 26,000 mines.[8]

Cluster munition remnants and other explosive remnants of war

Turkey is also contaminated with explosive remnants of war (ERW), primarily UXO, but has not identified the affected areas. Human Rights Foundation reports cited by Landmine Action in 2005 claimed that the areas most affected were Batman, Bingöl, Diyarbakir, Hakkari, Mardin, Siirt, Sirnak, and Van.[9] There is no evidence of any problem with cluster munition remnants.

Mine Action Program

Key institutions and operators

Body

Situation on 1 January 2012

National Mine Action Authority

None

Mine action center

None

International demining operators

None

National demining operators

Armed forces

International risk education operators

None

National risk education operators

None

There is not yet a national mine action authority or mine action center in Turkey. In March 2010, Minister of National Defense Vecdi Gönül told parliament that the government had set up a Top Project Board (TPB) to oversee mine action and a Project Implementation Board (PIB) to act as a national mine action center. The TPB would include representatives of the ministries of agriculture, finance, foreign affairs, internal affairs, and rural affairs, with other ministries participating when necessary. The ministry was said to be preparing a directive setting out the respective responsibilities of the TPB and PIB.[10] The government said in June 2011 that the initiative is “still in an initial process.” It said the Prime Minister had instructed all concerned government departments to prepare to participate and that the Ministry of Defense was coordinating preparations.[11]

Turkey informed the Eleventh Meeting of States Parties that it had created an Inter-ministerial Coordination Board (IMCB) in the Ministry of National Security that had started working on 26 October 2010 and would function as a National Mine Action Authority once the government had enacted the necessary legislation. Turkey said the IMCB would:[12]

·         Comprise among other institutions the Prime Minister’s office, the ministries of National Defense, Foreign Affairs, Finance, Education, Health, Energy, National Resources, Agriculture, Interior, Transport, Environment and Culture;

·         Issue instructions to and coordinate all government agencies involved in mine action;

·         Discuss key issues, ranging from appropriate mine clearance methodologies, risk education and planning local infrastructure to preserving cultural assets; and

·         Elaborate Turkish mine action standards.

Turkey also said it had set up a “Project Implementation Group” that would identify the exact coordinates of the mined areas and convert the data into digital maps.[13]

Turkey is developing plans for mine clearance on its borders with Armenia, Iran, Iraq, and Syria. Turkey and Syria reportedly agreed in 2003 to demine their common border.[14] Turkey says the Syrian border accounts for two-thirds of the mines laid on its territory and its clearance is therefore its “priority.”[15] Officials observe it is also the easiest border to clear because the terrain is flat and there has been minimal displacement of mines as a result of factors such as land erosion.[16]

Turkey’s president ratified Law No. 5903 on demining of minefields along the Syrian border on 16 June 2009. The law stipulates that initially the Ministry of National Defense will invite tenders for demining and if this process does not work the Ministry of Finance will have the minefields cleared through the “service procurement method” (the meaning of this is not clear). According to the law, if this method also fails, the government will invite companies to tender for demining in exchange for the right to cultivate lands suitable for agriculture for up to 44 years.[17]

The law also provided for the possibility of “requesting the services of the NATO Maintenance and Supply Agency” (NAMSA).[18] Turkey said in June 2011 it had concluded a “sales agreement” with NAMSA providing for quality management and technical support.[19] A NAMSA advisor in Ankara provides technical support on such issues as tendering procedures and contract management.[20]

Turkey reported in June 2010 that the Ministry of National Defense was “taking the necessary steps for a comprehensive programme” of border clearance[21] and in March 2011 it announced on its website that tenders would be invited for clearance of the 911km-long Syrian border divided into six separate areas with a total mined area of 212,000km2.[22] Officials say these six areas represent the entirety of mine contamination on the Syrian border but reported that in some of the six areas demarcation of the border is disputed by Syria and work would start in the other areas. The government had initially planned to set a deadline of June 2011 for tender submissions but later extended it. Officials told the ICBL in May that Turkey’s intention was still to start clearance in 2011.[23]

However, Turkey told standing committee meetings in Geneva in May 2012 that bids would be submitted only by 15 June 2012 for the first Syrian border clearance project, involving a 527km stretch between Cizre and Çobanbey. Clearance would continue until 2016. Bidding for the second Syrian border project, involving a 384km stretch of the border between Çobanbey and Denizgören would begin only after “validation of the contract” for the first section. Clearance of the second section is set to continue until the end of 2016.[24]

Minister of National Defense Gönül confirmed in 2010 that after clearing its border with Syria, Turkey planned to clear its other borders.[25] Turkey submitted a proposal to the European Union in 2010 seeking financing for a €50 million project Increasing the Border Surveillance Capacity Through de-mining of the Eastern Borders of Turkey.” The project provides for clearing Turkey’s Armenian border of all remaining mines, an area of 1.64km2, and for clearing three areas on its border with Iran north of Lake Van covering 6.4km2, 3.5km2, and 1.5km2, respectively. Under the proposal, Turkey would call for tenders at the end of 2012 or early in 2013 and expected work to start in 2013. Turkey planned to submit a proposal to clear the southern part of the border with Iran in 2012.[26]In May 2012, Turkey said the clearance of its border with Iran would be financed “to a certain extent” by the EU but gave no indication of timing.[27]

Land Release

In the past, demining in Turkey had been conducted by the Specialized Mine Clearance Unit of the Turkish army, using manual and mechanical means.[28] In 2008, a German commercial company, Tauber, working in partnership with the Turkish company Tusan Corporation, won a demining contract by tender to clear the Nusaybin border gate between Turkey and Syria.[29]

Mine clearance in 2011

Turkey’s mine clearance activities slowed in 2011, resulting in clearance of 244 antipersonnel mines in mined areas, according to its latest Article 7 report, compared with 2,310 the previous year. Most (180) of the cleared mines were from locations “other than borders.”[30]Turkey has not included in its Article 7 reports the destruction of antipersonnel mines laid by the PKK/KADEK/Kongra Gel, but the Turkish General Staff website has reported clearance of IEDs and said a further 92 antipersonnel mines were cleared in the first seven months of 2011.[31]

In March 2011, Nokta Yatirim Limited Company reported it had demined the ancient city of Karkamış, Gaziantep, clearing an area of 663,800m2 and destroying 1,200 mines.[32]

Compliance with Article 5 of the Mine Ban Treaty

Under Article 5 of the Mine Ban Treaty, Turkey is required to destroy all antipersonnel mines in mined areas under its jurisdiction or control as soon as possible, but not later than 1 March 2014.

Turkey has been slow to fulfill its obligations under Article 5 and has not reported in sufficient detail on either the remaining contamination or the clearance it has undertaken to date. In June 2010, Turkey said that “the Ministry of National Defense is taking the necessary steps for a comprehensive programme and timelines of clearance, in collaboration with NAMSA, to comply with the deadline set for 2014” but at the Eleventh Meeting of States Parties Turkey announced that clearance of the Syrian border, which it has identified as its priority, would not be completed until 2016.[33]

Although Turkey has initiated plans for clearance of its border minefields,it has made no announcement of any plans to clear the 77,984 mines it has identified as being laid within its borders.[34] Turkey also still needs to set out concrete plans for clearance of all affected areas under its jurisdiction or control to meet its treaty requirements, including areas under its control in northern Cyprus.

Other Risk Reduction Measures

Some mine warning signs have been placed near settlements between Nusaybin and Midyat in the southeastern province of Mardin, according to Turkish media reports.[35]

Risk Education

Turkey undertakes little mine/ERW risk education (RE). In 2007, the Minister of Internal Affairs summed up RE activity by commenting that, “the citizens in the region are being warned periodically that they should inform the security forces when they encounter suspicious things.”[36]

 



[1]Statement of Turkey, Standing Committee on Mine Clearance, Mine Risk Education and Mine Action Technologies, Geneva, 26 April 2007.

[3]Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2011), Form C. In June 2011, Turkey reported that the 613,766 mines located on its border with Syria included 163,825 antivehicle mines. Statement of Turkey, Standing Committee on Mine Clearance, Mine Risk Education and Mine Action Technologies, Geneva, 23 June 2011.

[5] Response to Landmine Monitor questionnaire by Elif Comoglu Ulgen, Head, Disarmament and Arms Control Department, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 14 July 2008.

[6]PKK, 7 ayda 92 mayindöşedi” (“PKK placed 92 mines in seven months”), Zaman, 18 August 2011.

[7] Email from Brian Kelly, Spokesperson, UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus Headquarters, 25 April 2002; and interview, Nicosia, 28 March 2002.

[8] Statement of Cyprus, Standing Committee on Mine Clearance, Mine Risk Education and Mine Action Technologies, Geneva, 21 June 2011.

[9] “Explosive remnants of war and mines other than anti-personnel mines,” Landmine Action, London, March 2005, p. 173.

[10] Speech to Parliament by VecdiGönül, Minister of National Defense, 2 March 2010, www.tbmm.gov.tr.

[11] ICBL interview with Ömer Burhan Tüzel, Deputy Director General, OSCE, Arms Control and Disarmament, Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Serhan Yiğit, Head, Department of Arms Control, Ministry of Foreign Affairs; Ramazan Ercan, Advisor on Mine Action, Ministry of Foreign Affairs; and Abdullah Özbek, Development and Implementation Bureau on Border Management Legislation and Administrative Capacity, Ministry of Interior, Ankara, 5 May 2011.

[12] Statement of Turkey,Eleventh Meeting of States Parties, Phnom Penh, 1 December 2011.

[13] Ibid.

[14] Ali M. Koknar, “Turkey Moves Forward to Demine Upper Mesopotamia,” Journal of Mine Action,Issue 8.2, November 2004.

[15] Statement of Turkey, Standing Committee on Mine Action, Mine Risk Education and Mine Action Technologies, Geneva, 23 May 2012.

[16] ICBL interview with Ömer Burhan Tüzel, SerhanYiğit, and Ramazan Ercan, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Abdullah Özbek, Ministry of Interior, Ankara, 5 May 2011.

[17] “President Gul Ratıfıes Law on Demining of Mınefields Along Syrıan Border,” Turknet (Ankara), 16 June 2009, www.haberturk.com/.

[18] Statement of Turkey, Standing Committee on Mine Action, Mine Risk Education and Mine Action Technologies, Geneva, 22 June 2010.

 [19]Ibid., 23 June 2011.

[20] Interview with HuseyinYurekli, Project Officer, Ministry of National Defense, in Geneva, 22 June 2011.

[21] Statement of Turkey, Standing Committee on Mine Action, Mine Risk Education and Mine Action Technologies, Geneva,22 June 2010.

[23] Interview with Ömer BurhanTüzel, Serhan Yiğit, and Ramazan Ercan, Ministry of Foreign Affairs; and with Abdullah Özbek, Ministry of Interior, Ankara, 5 May 2011.

[24] Statement of Turkey, Standing Committee on Mine Action, Mine Risk Education and Mine Action Technologies, Geneva, 23 May 2012.

[25] Speech to Parliament by VecdiGönül, 2 March 2010, www.tbmm.gov.tr.

[26] Interviews with Ömer Burhan Tüzel, SerhanYiğit, and Ramazan Ercan, Ministry of Foreign Affairs; and Abdullah Özbek, Ministry of Interior, Ankara, 5 May 2011; and with Abdullah Özbek, Department of Border Management, Ministry of Interior, Ankara, 21 February 2011.

[27]Statement of Turkey, Standing Committee on Mine Action, Mine Risk Education and Mine Action Technologies, Geneva, 23 May 2012.

[28] Convention on Conventional Weapons Amended Protocol II Article 13 Report (for calendar year 2008), Form F.

[29] Response to Monitor questionnaire by Elif Comoglu Ulgen, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 14 July 2008.

[30] Article 7 Reports (for calendar years 2011 and 2010), Forms C and G.

[31] Turkish General Staff, “PKK deployed 92 mines in seven months,” Zaman, 19 August 2011.

[32]The mines were cleared, a new antique city is rising up”, Gaziantep Hakimiyet, 18 March 2011.

[33] Statement of Turkey, Standing Committee on Mine Action, Mine Risk Education and Mine Action Technologies, 28 May 2009; and Statement of Turkey, Eleventh Meeting of States Parties, Phnom Penh, 1 December 2011.

[34] Article 7 Report (for calendar year 2010), Form C.

[35]Nusaybin’deköyleremayınlevhalarıdikildi” (“Mine signboards have been placed in Nusaybin villages”), SonDakika.com, 7 July 2010.

[36] “Measure against Mine: Warning the Public,” Radikal, 30 December 2007, www.radikal.com.tr.