Ukraine: Glass cobwebs in the fields, why fibre optics can be a problem for demining


A new anthropogenic landscape is forming along the front line, saturated with everything possible: debris, mines, unexploded ordnance, and toxic waste. Fiber optics from drones are also on this list. Millions of kilometers of thin cables litter Ukrainian lands and pose a new challenge for humanitarian demining teams.

It would be absurd to stop using fiber-optic drones for “environmental” reasons, but deminers are already thinking about the risks they face in trying to conduct humanitarian demining in affected areas. And farmers are faced with uncertainty – it is impossible to conduct research in the fields or predict the development of events after the liberation of the territories or the end of hostilities, because the problem is new.

Read more…
Source: Mezha News


Sign up for the Counter-IED Report Newsletters
The latest news and insights delivered right to your inbox


Related:

  • Demining Ukraine: 17,000 ha of liberated territory cleared in September

    September 5, 2024

    In August, 17,000 hectares of mine-contaminated land in liberated areas were cleared of explosives. That’s according to the Ministry of Defense, Ukrinform reports. “In August, demining units of Ukraine’s Defense Ministry cleared 17,368.4 hectares in de-occupied territories of explosives, of which 17,308.65 hectares are farmlands,” the statement reads. In the course of mine clearance, 8,837 explosive ...

  • Ukraine: Government will compensate 100% of the cost of demining to farmers who demine agricultural land

    September 2, 2024

    The Cabinet of Ministers has increased the amount of compensation for agricultural producers who plan to demine agricultural land from 80% to 100%. The programme will also now be open to those farmers who have a tax debt for land or a single tax debt if they are group IV single tax payers. And bidding for ...

  • Croatia donates robotic mine clearance system to Ukraine

    September 1, 2024

    Croatia has announced the transfer of a robotic mine clearance system to Ukraine. The relevant certificate was handed over to Ukrainian representatives by Croatian Defence Minister Ivan Anušić and the heads of the manufacturing company during the Globsec international conference in Prague. Anušić noted that the process of mine clearance in Ukraine will require a lot ...

  • Employing Military Working Dogs in Large-Scale Combat Operations

    August 30, 2024

    Canines have been useful to military organizations since their domestication. Few, if any, instruments of war have the successful track record and longevity of MWDs. They remain effective in a variety of environments, including dense vegetation, subterranean complexes, and trench networks. Even in the current operational environment, there are many situations in which MWDs outperform drones ...

  • EU defense aid to Ukraine exceeds EUR 43.5B

    August 30, 2024

    Military aid from the EU member states to Ukraine since the outset of Russia’s full-scale invasion has exceeded EUR 43.5 billion. This was stated by EU High Representative Josep Borrell, who spoke at a press conference in Brussels following the informal meeting of EU defense ministers, reports an Ukrinform correspondent. “Figures are important,” Borrell said, adding ...

  • Ukraine’s long-range drones using Western tech to hit Russia

    August 29, 2024

    Western technology and finance are helping Ukraine carry out hundreds of long-range strikes inside Russia. That is despite Nato allies still refusing to give Ukraine permission to use Western-supplied munitions to do so – mostly because of fears of escalation. Ukraine has been stepping up its long-range strikes inside Russia over the past few months, launching ...

  • Canada backs project to train public in mine safety and empower women sappers in Ukraine

    August 26, 2024

    Thanks to the support from the Government of Canada, the Association of Sappers of Ukraine (ASU) has launched a project to provide mine safety training to the general population. In Ukraine, particularly in the de-occupied regions, explosive objects still pose a danger to the local population. For this reason, educating the public on properly handling the ...

  • Ukraine’s border with Belarus in Zhytomyr Oblast “sealed entirely”

    August 26, 2024

    Vitalii Bunechko, Head of the Zhytomyr Oblast Military Administration, believes the chances of a Russian offensive across Zhytomyr Oblast are “very small,” because the border is well protected, particularly by fortifications, and heavily mined. According to Bunechko, the fortification work is 99% complete: “in some places the workers are correcting their mistakes; in certain locations, we ...

  • Sahel: UN Security Council must call out “Ukraine’s support for terrorism”

    August 23, 2024

    Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger have petitioned the president of the UN Security Council to denounce what they call the Ukrainian government’s “open support for international terrorism” in the Sahel. A letter dated August 19 and signed by the envoys to the UN of the three Sahelian countries was released on Tuesday (Aug. 20). The move ...

  • Russian bomb squad finds, destroys two Ukrainian air bombs in Kursk Region

    August 23, 2024

    A bomb squad from the Russian Emergency Situations Ministry destroyed two Ukrainian air bombs in the Kursk Region, said Artyom Sharov, a ministry spokesman. “Bomb squad technicians from the Emergency Situations Ministry defused and destroyed two demolition bombs, a FAB-500 and a FAB-250, on the territory of one of the districts of the region,” he said. ...

  • Women take the lead as handlers in UNDP’s Technical Survey Dogs project for demining in Ukraine

    August 21, 2024

    The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is proud to announce the launch of an innovative project in Ukraine that is set to transform demining operations and create critical methodologies for mine action. This initiative features the deployment of sixteen Technical Survey Dogs (TSDs) alongside eight women handlers, and is a collaborative effort involving UNDP, the Mines ...

  • Japan: Implementation of training program on the operation of large demining machines for the staff of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine

    August 21, 2024

    As part of its assistance in mine action, which is an urgent issue in Ukraine, Japan, through the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), conducted training programs from late July to August to staff members of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine (SESU) on the operation and maintainance of demining machines Japan provided to Ukraine in ...

  • IAEA Director General Statement on Situation in Ukraine – Update 245

    August 17, 2024

    The nuclear safety situation at Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) is deteriorating following a drone strike that hit the road around the plant site perimeter today, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi said. The IAEA team immediately visited the area and reported that the damage seemed to have been caused by ...

  • Japan to purchase equipment for humanitarian demining in Ukraine and hand it over to the SES

    August 16, 2024

    Japan has ordered 12 minibuses and 8 trailers from Ukrainian manufacturers for the SES. The equipment is part of JICA’s support package for demining in Ukraine, with a total funding of more than $70 million. Japan will buy equipment for humanitarian demining in Ukraine , which it plans to transfer to the State Emergency Service. This ...

  • IAEA Director General Statement on Situation in Ukraine – Update 244

    August 13, 2024

    he International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) at Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP) viewed evidence provided to the team today that continues to indicate that Monday’s fire did not start at the base of the cooling tower, IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi said. Following its visit to the impact site yesterday, the IAEA Support and ...