Key developments since May 2005: Ukraine deposited its ratification
on 27 December 2005 and the Mine Ban Treaty entered into force on 1 June 2006.
In February 2006, the European Commission awarded a €5.9 million contract
for the destruction of Ukraine’s 5.95 million PFM-type mines. An EC
€1 million tender for the destruction of an additional recently identified
716,746 non-PFM antipersonnel mines was cancelled. The UN conducted an
interagency assessment in December 2005; the report had not been completed as of
1 June 2006. Ukraine approved a three-year program to dispose of ammunition at
the Novobohdanovka military base. Mine risk education was initiated in 2005 on
a regional basis. There were 16 new casualties from unexploded ordnance in
2005, a decrease from 2004.
Mine Ban Policy
Ukraine signed the Mine Ban Treaty on 24 February 1999. On 18 May 2005,
parliament approved draft law No. 0253 on the ratification of the Mine Ban
Treaty.[1] Immediately after the
vote, the President of Ukraine signed the ratification
law.[2] Ukraine officially deposited
its instrument of ratification with the UN on 27 December 2005, and the treaty
entered into force on 1 June 2006.
Ukraine’s initial transparency report required by Article 7 is due by
28 November 2006. Ukraine has not indicated what steps it will take to
implement the treaty domestically, as required under Article 9. On 19 January
2006, the Government Committee on Legal and Defense Policy approved the
establishment of an interagency working group for preparation of a national mine
action program.[3]
Ukraine attended the Sixth Meeting of States Parties in Zagreb, Croatia in
November-December 2005, but did not make any statements. Ukraine participated
in the intersessional Standing Committee meetings in Geneva in June 2005, where
Deputy Minister of Defense Volodymyr Tereschenko reaffirmed his country’s
determination to fulfill all the obligations of the Mine Ban
Treaty.[4] Ukraine also attended the
Standing Committee meetings in May 2006, where it made a statement on stockpile
destruction.
Ukraine is party to the Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW). On 19 May
2005, Ukraine deposited its instrument of ratification for Protocol V on
explosive remnants of war. It ratified Amended Protocol II on landmines on 15
December 1999, at which time it deferred compliance with Amended Protocol
II’s requirements for self-destruction and self-deactivation of remotely
delivered antipersonnel mines for nine
years.[5] Ukraine attended the
Seventh Annual Conference of States Parties to Amended Protocol II in November
2005 and submitted a national annual report as required by Article 13 on 22
November 2005.[6]
Production and Transfer
Ukraine produced components for Soviet mines, but the government has
repeatedly stated that Ukraine has not been involved in production since its
independence.[7] Ukraine is not known
to have exported antipersonnel mines. Its 1999 moratorium on the export of
antipersonnel mines was formally in place through
2003,[8] and in practice stayed in
effect until Ukraine ratified the Mine Ban
Treaty.[9]
Stockpiling and Destruction
Ukraine is due to officially declare its stockpile of antipersonnel mines in
its initial Article 7 transparency report due in November 2006. It has been
reported for the last two years that Ukraine has a stock of 5,947,596 PFM-type
mines. However, a European Commission (EC) tender for the destruction of
antipersonnel mines in the Ukraine noted the existence of 716,746 additional
antipersonnel mines of various types (detailed in following
table).[10] Thus, it appears that
as of mid-2006, Ukraine has a stockpile of 6,664,342 antipersonnel mines.
Antipersonnel Mines Stockpiled by Ukraine
Mine Type
Quantity
POM-2S
148,696
POMZ-2
38,921
POMZ-2M
204,021
OZM-4
4,008
OZM-72
290,177
MON-50
3,593
MON-90
11,685
MON-100
15,645
PFM-type
5,947,596
Total
6,664,342
It appears that Ukraine inherited a stockpile of 7.17 million antipersonnel
mines from the Soviet Union, including the 716,746 mines mentioned above,
404,903 PMN-type mines and 6,048,684 PFM-type mines. Ukraine has destroyed
505,991 of those antipersonnel mines since 1999. Destruction of all 404,903
PMN-type mines took place from July 2002 to May 2003 under a Canadian-led NATO
Trust Fund project.[11] A total of
101,088 PFM-1 mines were destroyed between March and April 1999 at the Desna
Training Center by the Ministry of Defense at a cost of €120,000 (some
US$150,000).[12]
The EC announced in August 2005 a €1 million ($1,261,556) tender for
the destruction of the 716,746 non-PFM antipersonnel mines stockpiled by
Ukraine. The tender envisioned that work would start in January 2006 with
completion in 36 months.[13] However, this tender was cancelled on 25 October
2005.[14]
The EC launched a project in 2002 to prepare the destruction of
Ukraine’s PFM mines. In mid-2003, an EC technical study determined that
the condition of the PFM stockpiles was good; the mines have since been
consolidated into two sites, from a previous total of 13 storage
locations.[15] In 2004, the EC
completed a research project that assessed destruction methodologies, and then
took a decision to commit sufficient funds for the destruction of the PFM
mines.[16] In June 2005, the EC
announced that it had concluded the negotiation of the terms of reference of a
€6 million ($7.5 million) project to destroy the
mines.[17]
In late June 2005, the EC announced a €6 million ($7,568,091) tender
for the destruction of Ukraine’s PFM-type antipersonnel mines with work to
begin in January 2006 and completion within 36 months. The tender specified
that the contractor will provide for two destruction facilities and treat
“liquid and gaseous effluents to levels of concentrations of contamination
acceptable for release into the environment, specified in [the Government of
Ukraine’s] granted licenses and
permits.”[18]
This tender was apparently cancelled in September
2005.[19] However, the EC announced
in February 2006 that the contract was awarded to a consortium including
Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ) GmbH (Germany),
GRV Luthe Kampfmittelbeseitigung GmbH (Germany), DYNASAFE AB (Sweden) and
Ingenieurbüro Döring GmbH (Germany), for the amount of
€5,910,000
($7,473,764.79).[20]
Ukrainian organizations have protested the EC tender procedures and the
award. The director of the Pavlograd Chemical Plant in a letter to the
President of the EC claimed that all Ukrainian respondents to the tender were
unfairly removed during the initial stage of the competition for a lack of
experience in the international destruction of ammunition, despite having 56
years of experience in destroying conventional
ammunition.[21] The director also
alleged several irregularities, which violate EC tender procedures.
The Ukrainian liaison officer to the tender committee also alleged numerous
irregularities in the tender procedures and the technical basis for the award to
GTZ. Specifically, he alleged that the technology proposed by GTZ for
dismantling PFM cassettes violates Ukrainian safety and environmental
regulations. He also alleged that GTZ’s proposal was incomplete and
deviated substantially from the technical award
criteria.[22]
The NGO Ukrainian Mine Action Agency (UMAA) stated that the GTZ proposal and
the tender award by the EC violate several elements of the terms of reference
agreed to by Ukraine and the EC. Specifically, the UMAA has alleged that the
dismantling of PFM cassettes and the open detonation of PFM mines is technically
non-compliant with the agreed terms of reference. UMAA has also said that the
process of obtaining the necessary licenses and permits was not followed by the
contractors.[23]
Landmine and ERW Problem
Ukraine is affected by landmines and explosive remnants of war (ERW), both
unexploded ordnance (UXO) and abandoned explosive ordnance, mostly as a result
of heavy fighting between German and Soviet forces in World War
II.[24] The scope of this problem
is not exactly known. The Ministry of Emergency Situations has estimated that
there were up to 1,000 battle sites on Ukrainian territory. The Ministry of
Defense is said to have some records for minefields from World War II.
Information was previously held or reported at a local or provincial level and
not necessarily collated nationally, making it difficult to obtain an accurate
nationwide picture of the problem of World War II
ordnance.[25]
In addition, many modern ammunition depots are overstocked and located in
close proximity to densely populated
areas.[26] In Sevastopol, for
example, a large underground depot consisting of many chambers houses up to
10,000 tons of munitions. This site is currently the subject of a complex
disposal operation, as the roof of the chambers collapsed due to a partial
detonation that occurred in 1942. This has created concern that the pressure of
the rock may cause a detonation, which would be devastating to the inhabited
areas, which sit in the potential fallout
zone.[27] On 6 May 2005, nine
ammunition depots in Cvetoha, Khmelnitskiy area, exploded following a
fire.[28]
One subcategory of the World War II munitions problem concerns sea mines and
the dumping of munitions at sea. Landmines have been found on the shore in the
Crimea, and sea mines have been found in the Black Sea off the Crimean coast.
Other munitions have been dredged up from the sea bed, including suspected
chemical munitions.[29]
Mine Action Program
There has been no formal mine action program in the Ukraine. On 19 January
2006, however, in accordance with proposals by the Ministry of Defense, the
Government Committee on Legal and Defense Policy was said to have approved the
establishment of an interagency working group to prepare a national mine action
program.[30] No further details had
been reported by June 2006.
Clearance of World War II mines and ordnance was previously carried out by
demining units from the Ministry of Defense, explosives units of the Ministry of
Emergency Situations, and the Bomb Disposal Service of the Ministry of Internal
Affairs. In November 2005, the President of Ukraine issued a decree giving sole
responsibility for clearance operations to the Ministry of Emergency Situations
from 1 January 2006.[31]
A non-governmental initiative, the Ukrainian Mine Action Coordination Center
(UMACC), was established in January 2004 as a joint project of six Ukrainian
organizations, to support Ukrainian ratification of the Mine Ban Treaty and to
establish itself as an expert body for the implementation of mine action in
Ukraine.[32] UMACC has in turn
established the Humanitarian Mine Action Forum, which brings together a number
of NGOs to discuss issues and activities in mine action. It is chaired by UMACC
and is said to be attended by NGOs and commercial companies involved in all five
pillars of mine action.[33]
On 12-17 December 2005, following a request from Ukraine the previous
May,[34] the UN conducted an
interagency assessment mission to Ukraine, led by the UN Development Programme
(UNDP). By 1 June 2006, the report had not yet been
finalized.[35]
Article 5 of the Mine Ban Treaty requires that all mined and mine-suspected
areas under Ukraine’s jurisdiction or control are identified, fenced and
marked, prior to destruction of all antipersonnel mines in mined areas as soon
as possible and no later than 10 years after the treaty entered into force for
Ukraine on 1 June 2006.
Demining
In 2005, the explosives units of the Ministry of Emergency Situations
conducted 3,116 emergency operations; these resulted in the destruction of about
39,000 munitions, including 3,609
mines.[36] In January 2006, the
Ministry of Emergency Situations conducted 102 clearance operations, which
resulted in the destruction of 375 ERW, including 46
landmines.[37]
In July-August 2005, the Joint Explosives Unit of the Ministry of Emergency
Situations received training at the Ministry of Defense’s Demining Center,
and then started explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) operations at a military base
in Novobohdanovka, in Zaporizhzhya region. In August-December 2005, together
with the Fourth Regional Rescue Unit, teams collected about 1,101,392 ERW.
During January 2006, a further 10,988 ERW were
collected.[38]
The base at Novobohdanovka has 107 ammunition storage areas (36 vaults and 71
open storage platforms). As a result of a fire in May 2004, some 60 percent of
the ammunition was either destroyed or strewn over an area of more than 400
hectares (4,000,000 square meters).[39] On 26 January 2006, the government approved a three-year program to
dispose of rockets and ammunition at the Novobohdanovka base during 2006-2008.
The Ministry of Emergency Situations would be responsible for the coordination
of clearance operations.[40] Also
in January 2006, Transimpex, a Ukrainian company, and ArmorGroup, a UK company,
conducted a survey of contamination in and around the Novobohdanovka storage
depots.[41]
In 2005, Luxembourg contributed €20,000 ($24,898) to the Organization
for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) for mine clearance and the
destruction of stocks of dangerous ammunition in
Ukraine.[42]
Support to Mine Action
Ukrainian deminers continued to participate in UN/NATO peacekeeping
operations in other countries. In December 2005, Ukrainian peacekeeping
contingents finished demining in Iraq and returned to Ukraine. On 9 January
2005, during an EOD operation in Wasit province in Iraq, eight Ukrainian
soldiers were killed and nine others injured by
ERW.[43]
In March 2006, in accordance with a decision by the UN in December 2005, the
Third Engineer Battalion of the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) finished
its demining work and returned to
Ukraine.[44]
Mine Risk Education
There is no mine risk education (MRE) program on the national level in
Ukraine. On a regional level, however, in 2005-2006 the Ministry of Defense and
the Ministry of Emergency Situations in cooperation with local authorities and
demining teams conducted limited MRE to prevent casualties among military forces
and civilians in UXO-affected zones in Artemovsk, Cvetoha, Novobohdanovka, Kerch
and Sevastopol. Television and radio channels provided warnings about the
dangers of UXO, and guidance on safe behavior in areas suspected to be
dangerous. These warnings, reinforced via the Internet and press agencies, were
prompted by explosions in ammunition depots, such as those in Cvetoha in May
2005.[45]
Other public information shown from time to time on national television
included interviews with military officers, police and NGOs, as well as programs
on the work of Ukrainian deminers
abroad.[46]
According to the ministries of defense and interior, demining specialists
also conducted basic MRE for civilians in affected areas before initiating
clearance operations. MRE sessions are based on the professional technical
background and individual experience of the trainer, rather than on any standard
script or specific educational
materials.[47]
Ukraine did not include information on the MRE campaign in official reports
submitted to the UN, NATO, EC or OSCE. International Mine Action Standards
(IMAS) have not been applied to MRE in Ukraine and no national standards have
been developed.[48]
The areas where children regularly find and tamper with UXO were
Novobohdanovka, Artemovsk, Kerch, Sevastopol, Kiev, Vinnytsya and
Kharkov.[49] Teenagers are the most
at-risk group. Local school administrations have asked state officials for mine
awareness training every year, especially in the heavily mine/UXO-affected zones
around ammunition depots where explosions have occurred. People in
Novobohdanovka and Yavoriv protested that the Ministry of Defense and Ministry
of Emergency Situations had failed to inform them about military exercises and
EOD operations including the destruction of UXO by open detonations. Demining
and EOD undertaken by open detonation has reportedly caused environmental
problems.[50]
Ukraine has no early warning system for civilians in case of emergency.
There is no interagency plan for evacuation of the civilian population and
military personnel when major explosive incidents
occur.[51]
In schools, some elements of MRE are taught to grades 11 and 12 for youths
undergoing pre-conscription military training. The Academy of Pedagogical
Science and the Ministry of Emergency Situations developed a curriculum and
teacher training manual for instructing children in school on how to respond to
dangerous and emergency scenarios.[52] As the curriculum does not address the threats and risks posed by mines
and UXO, the NGO UMACC proposed the inclusion of MRE in the curriculum for
schools in mine-affected areas, with teacher-training and materials based on
international best practice.[53] No
textbooks or manuals on MRE for secondary schools had been published by May
2006.
UNICEF is said to have been requested by Ukrainian NGOs to assist in
establishing professional MRE.[54]
Landmine and UXO Casualties
In 2005, UMACC recorded 16 new UXO casualties in Ukraine: three people were
killed and 13 were injured, including 10 military personnel injured in
explosions at the ammunition depot in Cvetoha in
May.[55] Civilian casualties were
attributed to tampering with UXO for the scrap and explosives; details of the
gender and age of the casualties were not
provided.[56] This represents a
decrease from the 20 UXO casualties in
2004.[57]
In Iraq, on 9 January 2005, “a remote-controlled mine blast”
killed eight Ukrainian military personnel and one Kazakh deminer during EOD
activities in Wasit province; seven other Ukrainians were
injured.[58]
No new landmine/UXO casualties were reported as of 1 May
2006.[59] However, on 23 April, an
improvised explosive device injured 18 civilians, including two children, in the
city center of Kharkov.[60]
The total number of mine casualties in Ukraine is not known, although there
are estimates as high as 80,000 mine survivors among 300,000 disabled war
veterans. Between 2000 and 2005, Landmine Monitor recorded 95 mine/UXO
casualties, including 41 people killed and 54 injured. The majority of civilian
casualties appear to be due to
UXO.[61]
The Accounting Chamber of Ukraine confirmed that errors within the State
Register, the database on veterans and other disabled in Ukraine, prevent an
accurate account of veterans and landmine/UXO casualties, and that this has also
impacted budget appropriations for benefits to veterans and other disabled
people.[62]
On 4 April 2006, the Chairman of the Mine Survivors Union, speaking at a
joint press conference on the First International Day for Mine Awareness and
Assistance in Mine Action, stressed the “vital necessity to form a
database of mine survivors in the state, which would help to effectively assist
these people.”[63]
Survivor Assistance
Ukraine provides financial support for medical rehabilitation in sanatoria,
and provides social services including transportation, housing, healthcare and
free delivery of food and medication to war veterans, in accordance with the
national law for veterans and people with disabilities. Disabled veterans are
entitled to pensions; however, these are reportedly too low, at less than half
the official minimum wage. The state budget in 2005 initially provided US$30
million for the medical rehabilitation of disabled people. The real needs are
estimated as $54 million.[64] In
2005, Ukraine provided a total of $157 million for state programs to serve both
veterans and people with
disabilities.[65]
In March 2005, the newly elected President of Ukraine closed the Ukrainian
State Department for Veterans Affairs, which had coordinated state policy on
veterans and war victims. This led to high-level governmental meetings and
public demonstrations by veterans’
groups.[66] The Ministry of Labor
and Social Policy was assigned responsibility for veterans and people with
disabilities, and proposed the creation of a Joint Council for Veterans Affairs.
The general lack of coordination for the delivery of services and failure to
implement reforms at the state level led to criticism from the Accounting
Chamber of Ukraine. In October 2005, it revealed that UAH87.3 million
($16,921,523) of state funds intended for support to veterans was
misappropriated by the Ministry of Labor and Social Policy for other
programs.[67]
In February 2006, 26 NGOs, including veterans and disability associations,
united in an independent response to the October report of the Accounting
Chamber of Ukraine, and created a coordination committee to protect the
interests of veterans, disabled people and war
victims.[68]
Disability Policy and Practice
Ukraine has laws that protect the disabled, prohibiting discrimination in
employment, education, access to healthcare and other state services. On 21
September 2005, the national newspaper, Den, cited the State Committee
for Statistics that only 14 percent of the disabled were employed; however, the
new government has raised the minimum wage three times, to UAH330 ($64)
monthly.[69]
In January 2006, parliament adopted a new law for the social protection of
“children of war”; the law applies to those born during or before
World War II, and those killed or injured by ERW. The budget for implementation
of the new law is $160
million.[70]
[1] “Ukrainian parliament
ratifies land mine convention,” UNIAN News Agency (Kiev), 18 May
2005. Ukraine attributes the long period between signing and ratifying the
treaty to its need for financial and technical assistance to destroy its large
stockpile of PFM antipersonnel mines within the treaty deadline. [2] Report of the Press Service of
the Parliament of Ukraine, 18 May 2005, www.rada.gov.ua. [3] Decree of the Government of
Ukraine, 19 January 2006, www.kmu.gov.ua. [4] Standing Committee on Stockpile
Destruction, “Meeting Report, 15 June 2005,” Geneva, June 2005.
[5] This deferral until 15 May 2008
became irrelevant when Ukraine became a State Party to the Mine Ban Treaty, as
it is now prohibited from using antipersonnel mines and obligated to complete
destruction of stocks within four years. [6] The UN mistakenly posted this
CCW Amended Protocol II Article 13 report on its website for Mine Ban Treaty
Article 7 reports. [7] Report of the Interagency
Working Group on Mine Action to the conference, on “Ottawa Convention:
Ukraine’s participation,” Kiev, 11 February 2003. [8] Order of the Prime Minister of
Ukraine, No. 426, 22 March 1999; report of the Interagency Working Group, Kiev,
11 February 2003. In June 2003, a Ministry of Foreign Affairs official said
that it was not necessary to extend the moratorium as the government intended to
ratify the Mine Ban Treaty in the near future. Statement by Vladimir Dzyub,
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, to the meeting of mine action experts, organized by
ICBL-Ukraine, UNDP and Atlantic Council of Ukraine, Kiev, 3 June 2003. [9] Statement by Elena Syrota,
Mine Action Officer, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Conference on Implementation
of the Mine Ban Treaty, Kiev, 17 May 2004. [10] EC Tender Electronic
Database, “Destruction of APM munitions in Ukraine,” 2005/S
160-159330, 20 August 2005, p. 2. [11] For details see Landmine
Monitor Report 2003, pp. 546-547. This included 111,607 PMN-1 mines and
293,296 PMN-2 mines. [12] Materials and documents of
the working meeting of representatives of state institutions and public
organizations, “The Ottawa Convention and its Significance for Signatory
Countries,” Kiev, 17 May 2004. The approximate US$ equivalent is
calculated at 2004 exchange rates. [13] EC Tender Electronic
Database, “Destruction of APM munitions in Ukraine, Service procurement
notice,” (2005/S 160-159330), 20 August 2005. [14] EC Tender Electronic
Database, “Destruction of APM munitions in Ukraine, Cancellation of a
service tender procedure,” (2005/S 160-159330), 25 October 2005. Average
exchange rate for 2004: €1 = US$1.2438, used throughout this report. US
Federal Reserve, “List of Exchange Rates (Annual),” 3 January
2005. [15] EC, presentation by Peter
Krejsa, “Destruction of PFM-1 Stockpiles in Ukraine,” Standing
Committee on Stockpile Destruction, Geneva, 15 June 2005. [16] EC Office of External
Relations, “EC Assistance to Ukraine on antipersonnel landmines,” 6
June 2005. This noted that the “Commission took already in 2004 the
financial decision to commit up to €7 million ($8.7 million) to support
destruction of the PFM-1 antipersonnel landmines stockpile in
Ukraine.” [17] EC Office of External
Relations, “EU and Ukraine launching project on the destruction of
landmines,” 16 June 2005. [18] EC Tender Electronic
Database, “Destruction of PFM-1 ammunition in Ukraine, Service procurement
notice,” 2005/S 122-119857, 28 June 2005. [19] EC Tender Electronic
Database, “Destruction of PFM-1 ammunition in Ukraine, Cancellation of a
service tender procedure,” 2005/S 185-182121, 24 September 2005. [20] EC Tender Electronic
Database, “Destruction of PFM-1 ammunition in Ukraine, Service contract
award notice,” 2006/S 23-024635, 3 February 2006. [21] Letter from Leonid N.
Shyman, General Director of State Enterprise “RIC PKhZ” (Pavlograd
Chemical Plant) to EC President Jose Manuel Barroso, 26 December 2005, p. 3. [22] Statement of Vitaliy Shved,
PhD, Advisor to the Deputy Minister of Defense and Project Liaison Officer,
undated, p. 6. [23] Open letter from Roman
Karpenko, UMAA, to GRV Luthe Kampfmittelbeseitigung GmbH, (121/05/06), 9 June
2006. [24] See Landmine Monitor
Report 2005, pp. 654–655. [25] UN, “United Nations
Mine Action Inter-Agency Assessment Mission to Ukraine, 12-17 December
2005,” Draft Report, June 2006, p. 3. [26] Eugen Marchuk, Minister of
Defense, quoted in Narodna Armiya (newspaper), 8 July 2004. [27] UN, “United Nations
Mine Action Inter-Agency Assessment Mission to Ukraine, 12-17 December
2005,” Draft Report, June 2006, p. 3. [28] See Landmine Monitor
Report 2005, p. 655. [29] UN, “United Nations
Mine Action Inter-Agency Assessment Mission to Ukraine, 12–17 December
2005,” Draft Report, June 2006, p. 3. [30] Governmental Decree of 19
January 2006, www.kmu.gov.ua. [31] Decree No. 1842/2005 of the
President of Ukraine, 10 November 2005. [32] See Landmine Monitor
Report 2004, p. 912. [33] UN, “United Nations
Mine Action Inter-Agency Assessment Mission to Ukraine, 12–17 December
2005,” Draft Report, June 2006, p. 4. [34] UN Mine Action Service
(UNMAS) letter to UMACC, 24 May 2005; see Landmine Monitor Report 2005,
p. 655. [35] Email from John Flanagan,
Chief of Programme Support Section, UNMAS, 31 May 2006. [36] Ministry of Emergency
Situations, “Annual Report 2005,” www.mns.gov.ua. [37] Ministry of Emergency
Situations, “Monthly Report: January 2006,” Kiev, February 2006.
[38] Ibid. [39] Ibid. [40] Governmental Decree No. 47
of 26 January 2006. [41] Ministry of Emergency
Situations, “Information Report,” Kiev, July 2005. [42] Email from François
Berg, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Luxembourg, 30 March 2006. [43] Report released by Press
Service of the Ministry of Defense, Kiev, 9 January 2005. [44] See report on Lebanon in
this edition of Landmine Monitor. [45] Statement by Vitaliy Turov
to the Forum of Mine Action Community in Ukraine, Kiev, 13 December 2005. [46] Ibid. [47] Interview with Maj. Gen.
Vasiliy Melnitskiy, Director, UMACC, Kiev, 13 December 2005. [48] Ibid. [49] Ibid. [50] Interview with Col. Anatoliy
Zhukov, Ministry of Emergency Situations, Vinnica, 11 December 2005. [51] Interview with Larisa Bayda,
Director, Fund for Youth Culture Education, at the Forum of Mine Action
Community in Ukraine, Kiev, 13 December 2005. [52] Interview with Col. Anatoliy
Zhukov, Ministry of Emergency Situations, Vinnica, 11 December 2005. [53] Interview with Larisa Bayda,
Fund for Youth Culture Education, Kiev, 13 December 2005. [54] Statement by Larisa Bayda,
Fund for Youth Culture Education, at the Forum of Mine Action Community in
Ukraine, Kiev, 13 December 2005. According to the UNICEF representative in
Kiev, this happened several years ago. UNICEF requested a proposal and none was
forthcoming. Interview with Jeremy Hartley, UNICEF Representative in Ukraine,
at the meeting of UN Global Compact Initiative, Kiev, 25 April 2006; email from
Jeremy Hartley, 5 July 2006. [55] Email from Yuri Donskoy,
Coordinator, Ukrainian Campaign to Ban Landmines, and President, Soldiers of
Peace International Association-Ukraine/UMACC, 4 June 2006. It was reported
previously that nine military personnel had been injured in the Cvetoha
incident; see Landmine Monitor Report 2005, p. 656. [56] Email from Yuri Donskoy,
Ukrainian Campaign to Ban Landmines, 4 June 2006. [57] See Landmine Monitor
Report 2005, p. 656. [58] “The commander of a
Ukrainian battalion in Iraq and 9 other military was killed by a
remote-controlled land-mine blast while performing their EOD duties,”
UNIAN (Kiev), 10 January 2005. [59] UMACC report for the ISPEX
2006 International Mine Action Conference (1-2 June 2006), Kiev, June 2006,
p.3. [60] Email from Yuri Donskoy,
Ukrainian Campaign to Ban Landmines, 4 June 2006. [61] See Landmine Monitor
Report 2005, p. 656; Landmine Monitor Report 2004, pp. 915-916. [62] Accounting Chamber of
Ukraine, “Results of investigation on using of budget money on social
protection of veterans of war,” report N 23-4, 25 October 2005, Kiev. [63] “Ukraine: Increasing
Mine Awareness and Providing Assistance in Mine Action,” UNIAN,
Kiev, 4 April 2006. [64] See Landmine Monitor
Report 2005, p. 656. [65] Ukraine Ministry of Labor
and Social Policy, “State Budget Report 2005,” Kiev, 23 March 2006,
www.mlsp.gov/ua, accessed 11 July 2006. [66] See Landmine Monitor
Report 2005, p. 657. [67] Accounting Chamber of
Ukraine, “Results of investigation on using of budget money on social
protection of veterans of war,” report No. 23-4, 25 October 2005, Kiev.
Average exchange rate for 2005: US$1 =5.15911, Landmine Monitor estimate based
on www.oanda.com. [68] Email from Yuri Donskoy,
Ukrainian Campaign to Ban Landmines, 4 June 2006. [69] US Department of State,
“Country Reports on Human Rights Practices-2005: Ukraine,”
Washington DC, 8 March 2006. [70] Parliament of Ukraine,
Information Report of Press Service, Kiev, January 2006, www.rada.gov.ua.