Ukraine’s Long-Term Landmine Problem

April 4th is the International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action, a reminder of the obligation to protect civilians from one of war’s most indiscriminate threats. But in Ukraine, there is no end in sight to the crisis caused by mines. Across the country, posters of Patron the Jack Russell Terrier warn adults and children of the danger of landmines. The dog, a bomb-sniffing specialist, has become an unlikely national icon in recent years, with nearly 375,000 followers on Instagram, and millions of views of his animated adventures. 

It is easy to see why Patron’s message is needed. Ukraine is now the most heavily mined country in the world. Over 20 percent of its territory is contaminated by landmines and unexploded ordnance — explosive weapons such as bombs, rockets, shells, or grenades that failed to detonate and remain highly dangerous. That’s an area of approximately 139,000 square kilometers, roughly the size of New York state. According to the International Campaign to Ban Landmines, 6,279 people were killed or injured by mines and explosive remnants of war in 2024; approximately 90 percent were civilians, and nearly half were children. Approximately 3.7 million people remain internally displaced, with the fear of explosives being a primary deterrent to return.

Both Russian and Ukrainian forces are using mines. To make matters worse: the war in Ukraine and other threats of Russian aggression have further weakened legal efforts to ban the use of mines altogether. Sadly, therefore, this April 4th does not mark progress in the campaign to limit the harm done by mines to civilians around the globe. Quite the opposite. 

Since Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, Human Rights First, including one of the authors, has visited the frontline region of Kharkiv dozens of times. In March 2024, Human Rights First visited minefields in the region, speaking with civilians supporting mine clearance work, including demining specialists, and documented ongoing demining efforts.

The Ongoing Harm to Children in Ukraine

The United Nations Mine Action Service (UNMAS) says that Ukraine is facing contamination “not seen in Europe since the end of the Second World War.” Since February 2022, Save the Children reports, at least 1,660 civilians have been killed or injured by landmines and explosive remnants of war, including 179 children, exceeding the number of incidents recorded over the previous seven years of hostilities in eastern Ukraine. The United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) reported last year that adolescent boys aged 14 to 17 accounted for nearly 80 percent of the child casualties between February 2022 and March 2025 — largely because they are more likely to explore high-risk areas. “Additionally, adolescents from rural areas and low-income families face a higher risk of engaging in hazardous behavior,” UNICEF has found. 

While many areas of Ukraine are contaminated, the highest levels are concentrated in the eastern and southern regions, where there has been prolonged ground fighting, occupation, and heavy shelling. Many of the mines are hand-sized and delivered by aircraft or mortars. Known locally as “petals” because of their shape, to a child they can resemble toys. They are now particularly difficult to spot as spring vegetation conceals them in fields.

Kristina Kolii is based in the frontline city of Kharkiv and is part of the mass education effort teaching children about the dangers of landmines. Human Rights First met with her in Kharkiv in March this year and spoke with her about her work. Before the 2022 invasion, Kolii worked as a shoe designer, and says she “knew absolutely zero” about mines. After assisting with humanitarian efforts following the 2022 invasion, she now visits schools to warn about the explosives. 

“Kids often don’t understand the dangers, they see them on the ground and think they’re toys. But they’re generally open to learning, and have good questions,” Kolii told Human Rights First. “A huge effort is needed to educate the population,” she said. “But children learn quickly when we tell them about the dangers.” Kolii is currently undertaking a course to examine land and identify where mines are located, so sappers can clear the explosives.

Other efforts led by UNICEF and civil society actors to reach children on the issue have included door to door visits, comic books, a cartoon film, and online games. These collective efforts have shown results. According to a 2024 UNICEF survey, 97 percent of children in Ukraine have been taught basic mine safety rules and 80 percent can identify potentially hazardous objects. Yet many still take risks that expose them to deadly explosives.

Education is one challenge; locating and destroying the explosives another. International land mine experts estimate that over two million landmines have been laid by Russia in Ukraine since Russia’s full-scale invasion, a level of contamination one expert has deemed “unrecognizable in modern history.”

The Ottawa Convention: Further Weakened 

In response to the widespread death, injury, and devastation caused by mines, the international community adopted the 1997 Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Convention, also called the Ottawa Convention. The law prohibits the use, stockpiling, production, and transfer of anti-personnel mines, and obliges its 164 States parties to clear contaminated land and assist victims. These obligations reflect core principles of International Humanitarian Law, which rejects the use of inherently indiscriminate weapons. However, China, India, Pakistan, Russia and the United States never joined the Ottawa Convention. Human Rights First has for years urged the United States to ratify the Convention.

Several States that were a party to the treaty have either withdrawn from it or ceased to abide by their commitments. In July 2025, Ukraine notified the U.N. that it would “suspend the operation” of its obligations, citing the pressures of defending against Russia. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described mines as an “irreplaceable tool” for defense. States parties have rejected Ukraine’s position in Geneva, stressing that suspension is not an option under the Ottawa Convention and complete withdrawal is not designed for States actively engaged in hostilities. Despite these objections, Ukrainian forces were already using mines prior to its announcement. Indeed, the Biden administration reversed its policy against supplying Ukraine with anti-personnel landmines in late 2024.

Other countries bordering Russia, including the Baltic States (Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania), Finland, and Poland have withdrawn from the Ottawa Convention, also citing growing threats from Moscow.

All of these actions mean that the Ottawa Convention, which was never ratified by the world’s global powers, has been further weakened. 

A Crisis With No End in Sight

Fully demining Ukrainian land is likely to take decades. The Ukrainian Association of Humanitarian Demining has estimated it will take up to 30 years. Authorities often appear overwhelmed by the scale of work required, and unlicensed demining operations are springing up. Some desperate civilians do the enormously dangerous job for themselves.

Even if a cease fire or peace deal is eventually reached, Ukraine will still face a series of serious long-term challenges, including severely damaged infrastructure, a national mental health crisis, and a continuing Russian propaganda campaign. Before its agricultural sector can properly recover, the country will have to carry out an unprecedented landmine clearance program. 

The Stockholm School of Economics estimates the full cost of demining will be upwards of $35 billion, including “the need for tens of thousands of trained specialists — far more than the roughly 4,500 currently available.”

These eye-watering estimates — of the money, personnel, and time required — are calculated on the situation today, without more mines being deployed. But Russia’s war on Ukraine shows no sign of stopping, and more explosives are being scattered across Ukraine’s roads, fields, and forests all the time. 

This April 4th is a sad reminder that the effort to ban mines has been greatly undermined — nowhere more so than in Ukraine. 

Editor’s Note: See here for additional Just Security pieces analyzing the use of mines and their devastating effects around the world.

Read Next:

Featured Articles: