FLASH
Shkruar nga Pamfleti
Ukraine is now the most mined country on Earth, and its military is suffering from a critical shortage of men and equipment capable of clearing the front lines.
In an urgent appeal to allies, Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov told the Guardian that his soldiers were detecting five landmines for every square meter of land laid by Russian troops in an attempt to deter a Ukrainian counterattack.
" Today, Ukraine is the most mined country in the world. Hundreds of kilometers of minefields, millions of explosive devices, in some parts of the front line up to five mines per square meter. Russian minefields are a serious obstacle for our troops, but not insurmountable. We have skilled engineers and modern equipment, but they are extremely insufficient for the front that stretches hundreds of kilometers to the east and south of Ukraine , "said the Minister of Defense.
He said the vast minefields could be traversed, but that it was vitally important that the Allies "expand and accelerate" the training already being provided by some countries, including Britain.
Defense ministry officials in Kiev suggested there was an opportunity for countries such as Japan that do not want to provide arms assistance to provide support in the form of demining equipment and training.
Some of the mines that litter the country have been laid by Ukrainian forces themselves to protect their defense lines, but the vast majority are Russian.
Volodymyr Zelenskiy has complained that waiting for Western arms deliveries and delaying the start of this year's counteroffensive allowed Russia to plant millions of mines in front of its positions.
Pete Smith, the Ukraine program manager for demining NGO Halo, and formerly an officer in the British Army's All Explosive Ordnance Disposal Asset Command, said the level of mine contamination was "unknown in modern history".
Smith suggested that even with 10,000 minesweepers it would take a decade to decontaminate the site. Halo has 900, mostly locally-sourced, employees working in Ukraine and plans to have 1,200 trained experts operating in the country by the end of the year.
Lini një Përgjigje