The Danish Refugee Council condemns the decision by US President Joe Biden to transfer anti-personnel landmines to Ukraine. These weapons are banned by 164 countries, including Ukraine, for their indiscriminate nature.
Ukraine is already severely contaminated with landmines and other explosive remnants of war (ERW) from the ongoing conflict, which began in 2014 and escalated with Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022. With more than 100 km² of reported contamination and 580 casualties recorded in 2023 alone, Ukraine ranks among the top ten countries globally for explosive ordnance casualties.
As of August 2024, there were around 1,286 civilian victims of mines and explosive remnants as a result of the war (UNDP source). The inability to systematically survey and address the existing contamination due to active hostilities compounds the crisis.
Transferring and using more antipersonnel mines into this dire situation will only exacerbate the humanitarian toll, hinder future recovery efforts, and deepen the suffering of civilians.
The timing of this announcement is particularly disheartening, coming just days before the Fifth Review Conference of the, which will take place next week in Siem Reap, Cambodia.
The APMBC came into effect on March 1, 1999. Since then, the use of anti-personnel mines has sharply declined due to compliance with the Convention and the broad recognition of its principles by countries that are not formal parties to it.
The Danish Refugee Council (DRC) clear lands, raises awareness about the risks posed by explosive ordnance, and assists victims in more than 10 countries around the world, from Colombia to Afghanistan. We witness the devastating impact of these weapons daily. Only last year in Ukraine, DRC teams have released 281,077 sqm, helped more than 200 victims and delivered risk education sessions to almost 70,000 people.
As an International Campaign to Ban Landmines (campaigner and mine action operator, is deeply alarmed by these developments and calls on:
- All States Parties to the Convention to Publicly condemn this announcement and urgently seek bilateral engagement with the US to withdraw the decision.
- Defend and ensure strong language in the 5RevCon outcome documents related to condemnation of use by anyone under any circumstances, as well as condemnation of production, stockpiling and transfer of AP mines.
- On the Biden administration to reverse this decision and not transfer antipersonnel mines to Ukraine.
