Switzerland and Ukraine have brought together the international community in Lausanne to collaborate in the face of the “massive” challenges of humanitarian demining in the war-torn country. The President of the Confederation Viola Amherd announced the delivery of three additional machines.
“We are determined to continue to do our part,” she said Thursday at the start of a two-day ministerial meeting on this issue. “Each improvised explosive that we defuse is a step towards security” and improving the situation of the population, she said.
The systems from the Schwyz company Global Clearance Solutions (GCS) will be delivered this year. “This will enable effective and safe demining operations, independently, in the future,” insisted Viola Amherd before Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Chmygal and representatives of dozens of countries, NGOs and the private sector.
>> La Matinale’s explanations:
Partnership worth 4.6 million francs
In addition to this infrastructure, support for Ukrainian actors is part of the 4.6 million francs partnership with the Ukrainian disaster aid entity, financed entirely by the Confederation. GCS is the market leader for mine clearance machines in Ukraine.
The company works with the UN and several NGOs, such as the Swiss Mine Action Foundation (FSD) which currently employs more than 600 people in the country. It expects 100 of its machines to be in use by 2025 in Ukraine.
Last year, a remote mine clearance system from the Berne-based Digger Foundation was already sent to the Ukrainian authorities. Two will follow soon.
Hundreds of machines
In total, Switzerland has budgeted 100 million francs until 2027 for mine clearance in this country. Last week, the Federal Council announced that an envelope of 30 million would be allocated to the FSD to expand its activities in the Kharkiv and Kherson regions.
The scale of the challenges is truly massive (…) Never has such an effort been requested in the 21st century
Ukraine can already rely on around a hundred demining machines, three times more compared to last year, said Denys Chmygal, who arrived in Switzerland late Wednesday evening. But this number is not enough. Around 10,000 deminers will be needed, 6,000 more than currently, and several hundred machines.
“The scale of the challenges is truly massive,” adds Denys Chmygal. “Never has such an effort been requested in the 21st century,” according to him. It will take at least a decade at best to clear the land, probably several. And up to 9,000 people could die if these efforts are not carried out within ten years, according to Ukrainian authorities. Nearly 400 have been killed since the war began more than two years ago.
>> Listen to the interview with Frédéric Guerne, mine clearance expert, in the 12:30 p.m.
ats/hkr
