When Ukraine needed training on removing landmines and unexploded ordnance (UXO) left behind by Russian forces, who did it turn to? It was probably not who you'd expect.
Cambodia has the unenviable reputation as the world's leading expert on landmines. Huge numbers of landmines were laid and large numbers of bombs and cluster submunitions were dropped during successive conflicts in Cambodia during the 1970s, '80s and '90s. Many landmines remain.
The situation has been made worse by the near 3 million tons of bombs dropped on Cambodia by the United States in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of its involvement in the Vietnam War.
Well-trodden tourist routes throughout the country are completely safe for residents and visitors. But it is estimated that between 4 to 6 million landmines remain in rural areas, buried in Cambodian soil, undetected, and at risk of detonating at any time.
Landmines and UXO have taken a severe toll on the Cambodian people, with over 64,000 casualties and more than 25,000 amputees since 1979.
Cambodia is making incredible progress.
From June 1992 to December 2022, Cambodian Mine Action Centre (CMAC) found and destroyed over 585,000 landmines and nearly 2.4 million unexploded bombs. Together with the Halo Trust, Mines Advisory Group, Cambodian Self Help Demining, Norwegian People's Aid, and others, CMAC has cleared over 2,500 square kilometers of land since 1992. After humongous efforts, half of Cambodia's minefields have been cleared, and the average annual casualties toll from landmines and UXO in Cambodia has dropped from several thousand to fewer than 100.
But despite many years of peace and security, Cambodian citizens in rural areas—particularly along the rural northwest border with Thailand where an increasing number of families live—continue to fall victim to landmines and unexploded bombs left behind by nearly three decades of war that ended back in the late 1990s.
Cambodia is not alone.
According to Human Rights Watch, Russian forces have used at least seven types of antipersonnel mines in at least four regions of Ukraine, causing casualties and restricting access to homes, infrastructure, transportation routes, and agricultural lands.
Prime Minister Hun Sen of Cambodia invited Ukrainian demining experts to be been trained by CMAC experts at the Technical Institute of Mine Action located in the province of Kampong Chhnang. CMAC took the trainees to demining sites in the northwest province of Battambang, as well as on a tour of the Cambodia Landmine Museum in Siem Reap. Such support continues a longstanding tradition of Cambodia sending experts overseas to support United Nations demining efforts, including in Africa and the Middle East.
In spite of international pressure, popular treaties, and political promises, too many countries around the world remain contaminated by landmines. The International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL) claims that antipersonnel mines maim and kill ordinary people every day. To make matters worse, landmines are still being used in a few conflicts around the world, despite having questionable military value and protracted human cost.
This is storing up problems for the future. These weapons of indiscriminate destruction remain in or on the ground long after wars end. They are not choosy about who they kill. The ICBL believes the vast majority of victims are civilians, particularly children, rather than enemy soldiers. Landmines laid down during World War I are still causing death and destruction in parts of Europe and North Africa.
So why not just remove all landmines?
According to Richard Yim, a young Cambodian engineer who has strived to develop affordable demining technology, the removal and controlled detonation of unexploded landmines is dangerous, expensive, and time consuming. And very few maps exist of their precise locations. Ukrainian officials have estimated that, once the war with Russia is over, it could take at least a decade to clear its lands and waters of all mines and explosives.
But there is hope.
Landmine use has dramatically dropped thanks to the Mine Ban Treaty, as have global production and trade. Across the world, tens of millions of landmines have been destroyed, large areas of contaminated land have been cleared by national demining institutions and NGOs, and victims are receiving greater care.
We call on all countries to sign the Mine Treaty Ban, destroy stockpiles, and help clear all contaminated areas. Cambodia has shown what can be done with political will, local energy, and international support.
Heng Ratana is the director general of the Cambodian Mine Action Centre (CMAC).
The views expressed in this article are the writer's own.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
