Ukraine's minefield bigger than England – UN

Ukraine remains one of the most heavily mined countries in the world. About a quarter of an area larger than England is contaminated with explosives, The Guardian reported on Tuesday, August 26.

The aggressor country's troops have been extensively mined in areas they have been forced to retreat from. According to Paul Heslop, who is part of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) mission to clear Ukrainian territory of mines and unexploded ordnance, more than 1 million mines are now scattered across Ukraine.

"This includes bigger pressure-plate landmines (often called anti-tank or anti-vehicle mines) that contain a lot more explosive (5-10kg) and are triggered by heavier vehicles such as cars, tanks or military trucks," the report says.

Heslop also noted that a large number of unexploded shells, rockets, grenades, mortars from hostilities are located especially in the buffer zone, where artillery has a range of approximately 33 km.

"While clearing the areas, we are looking at a level of complexity, of scale, that we just haven't seen before," the expert said.

As the Ukrainian News agency earlier reported, Ukraine currently remains the most mined country in the world, with the area of ​​potentially contaminated territories amounting to about 139,000 square kilometers.

On March 11, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal stated that 23% of Ukraine's territory remains potentially mined.