Ukraine restricts planning of new humanitarian demining in zones 20–50 km from front
Ukraine's Defence Ministry says planning of new humanitarian demining is restricted at some sites in six regions because of security risks. It stresses this is not a halt to demining and the decision will be reviewed.
Ukraine has restricted the planning of new humanitarian demining at some sites in six regions because of security risks, the Defence Ministry said on 26 October. The ministry stressed that this "does not mean a halt to demining".
The decision was taken by the National Mine Action Authority, Ukraine's body responsible for coordinating mine clearance. According to the ministry, it applies to individual sites in the Donetsk, Dnipropetrovsk, Kherson, Mykolaiv, Kharkiv and Sumy regions. These lie within 20–50 km of the line of contact and of the border with Russia, which the ministry calls the "aggressor state". The restriction covers only places where work has not yet started.
What the decision says
- Work already under way. Where demining is already in progress, it is to be completed if the situation allows and if it does not interfere with the tasks of the Defence Forces.
- Priority in the 50 km zone. Emergency-response measures take precedence. The ministry lists those as work needed for evacuating residents, emergency and rescue operations, providing access to shelters, medical and humanitarian aid, and responding to threats from explosive objects.
- Unplanned demining. On justified requests, it remains possible to carry out unplanned humanitarian demining.
The ministry said the decision will be reviewed depending on the security situation. It did not say which specific sites or settlements are affected, how many sites are covered, or when the restriction takes effect. It also did not describe the security risks in detail.
Context
Humanitarian demining is the clearance of mines and unexploded ordnance from land so that civilians can use it safely, for example farmland, roads, homes and infrastructure. It is distinct from combat engineering by the military. Operators doing this work are often civilian teams, which makes them vulnerable in areas within reach of Russian drones, artillery and other fire.
The six regions named are all on or close to the front line or the Russian border. The ministry's statement does not link the decision to any specific incident, and RealUA has found no earlier coverage of the measure. The report comes from the ministry's official Telegram channel and has not been independently verified.
