Defense and Security Studies Commons^™

Belarus, Country Profile

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

An heir to massive Soviet stockpiles of anti-personnel mines and other munitions, Belarus has been actively facing its extensive explosive legacy through significant destruction of this explosive ordnance. Belarus is also affected by unexploded and abandoned ordnance left in large part from heavy fighting between German and Soviet troops during World War II and, to a lesser degree, minefields laid by both sides. Additional explosive remnants of war come from World War I and the 18th and 19th century's Napoleonic wars.

Croatia, Country Profile

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

On 25 June 1991, Croatia became an independent nation. Serbian and Yugoslav forces soon invaded the country, with the area known as Slavonia being a major battleground changing hands frequently throughout the conflict. The Dayton Peace Accords in November 1995 ended the fighting and Slavonia returned to Croatia on 15 January 1998. In 2003 Croatia applied for European Union membership and in 2004 received official candidate status. Prime Minister Ivo Sanader stated that 2007 is a critical year if Croatia wishes to become an EU member. While not directly included in these discussions, Croatia’s substantial mine-affected areas are seen as …

Low-Level Ordnance Neutralization Using The Asld System™, Floyd Artrip

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

This article outlines the benefits of using a new system of low-level mine neutralization. Some of the advantages of the A-Systems Landmine Destroyer System include effectiveness, easy transport, safety and minimal damage to environment. The author gives an overview of the System, describing its components, processes and field results.

Building Prosthetics & Orthotics Capacity In The Balkans, Nikola Prvulov, Justyna Przygocka, William K. Smith

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

The government of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) has been working with the Northwestern University Prosthetics/Orthotics Center in developing the Center for International Rehabilitation’s distance learning program to give formal training to experienced prosthetic technicians since 2003. In January 2006, the program’s first students graduated with an International Society of Prosthetics and Orthotics Category II certificate. The efforts of the CIR have led to the formation of the BiH Association of Orthopedic Technology, which is in the process of creating an ISPO regional center.

The Mine Injury And Trauma Seminar: A Way To Save Lives, Adam Kushner, Md

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

The author describes his journey to Ecuador for a seminar he was invited to teach for medical personnel working in or around demining sites. Working with the Organization of American States, the author developed a seminar to teach mine-clearance experts what actions to take if someone is injured by a mine, enabling personnel to react to multiple types of stimuli while working in the field. The author explains the details of this seminar and why it is an important part of the mine-action process. He also provides information on Ecuador’s own mine problem.

What Ever Happened To…?, Paddy Blagden

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

This article covers the activities of the Japan Alliance for Humanitarian Demining Support in Thailand, and can be seen as a sequel to the article, “They Started With a Temple,” found in Issue 7.2 of the Journal of Mine Action which described the expansion of JAHDS from a small, research-based nongovernmental organization into a capable, effective mine-clearance nongovernmental organization in Thailand. Things have changed since then, and this article gives the rest of the story.

Albania, Country Profile

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

For many citizens of Albania the current mine problem is a haunting reminder of the Kosovo Crisis of 1999. Upon returning home after an evacuation of the Albania- Kosovo border area, residents discovered the border polluted with mines and unexploded ordnance.

Chechnya, Country Profile

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

More than a decade of conflict between Russian armed forces and Chechen separatists has left Chechnya polluted with landmines, improvised explosive devices and unexploded bombs. Although clearance has been limited, organizations such as UNICEF have brought victim assistance and mine-risk education to Chechnya and its neighboring regions.

Former Yugoslav Republic Of Macedonia, Country Profile

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

<-Ten years after gaining independence, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia faced the uprising of an armed group of ethnic Albanians demanding greater civil rights. The hostility between the ethnic Albanians—who called themselves the National Liberation Army—and the Macedonian government lasted seven months and ended with the signing of the Framework Agreement in August 2001. This conflict, in addition to World Wars I and II, left Macedonia with contamination from landmines and other explosive remnants of war along the northern borders with Kosovo and Albania and the southern border with Greece. In September 2006, five years after the end of the internal conflict, Macedonia completed landmine clearance and continues to work towards clearance of other ERW.

Using The Mineburner System On Cluster Submunitions, Robert Keeley

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

This article is a summary of the findings of the mission carried out by RK Consulting Ltd. on behalf of Norwegian People's Aid Lebanon to determine the potential ability of the MineBurner system to destroy cluster submunitions safely.

Endnotes Issue 11.1, Cisr Journal

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Endnotes Issue 11.1

Mine-Action Capacity Development At A Crossroads, Dennis Barlow, Daniele Ressler

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

Capacity development is a central part of sustainable mine action. As a concept, capacity development has evolved over time but even now there is not an agreed-upon definition. While the mine action sector has made progress in encouraging the development of national capacity in many countries, there is still much that can be done to promote strong, capable institutions—both within the mineaction field and beyond.

Best Practice Strategy: Speak With One Voice, Sabina Jalilova

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

In this article, the Public Relations Officer of ANAMA discusses how successful communication with the public has been critical to the success of the mine action program in Azerbaijan. As part of its public-relations efforts in 2006, ANAMA organized a mine-action workshop for local journalists.

Joint Analysis Of Landmine Impact And Human Development Surveys In Armenia, Aldo Benini, Charles Conley

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

In Armenia, the UNDP implemented a Landmine Impact Survey as well as a Human Development Survey, although separately from each other. The authors, by linking the two data bodies, demonstrate new findings about mine-affected communities in a poverty-alleviation perspective.

Safe And Efficient Use Of Mine Dogs In The Republic Of Croatia, Mirko Ivanušić, Davor Laura, Željko Šarić

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

In this article, the authors discuss the use of mine-detecting dogs in the mine-action community as a whole, using the Republic of Croatia as an example. Specifically, they describe guidelines that must be followed to ensure MDDs are employed properly and maintain a high level of effectiveness.

The Mine-Action Process In Iraqi Kurdistan, Jamal Jalal Hussein

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

The Iraqi Kurdistan Mine Action Agency has been working to clear Kurdistan of landmines and unexploded ordnance that were placed by the former Iraqi government over the past 40 years and the Iranian Army during the Iran-Iraq War from 1980–1988. The Agency is overcoming many challenges and has cleared a vast number of minefields so the land can be handed back to the owners. Casualties from explosive remnants of war are extremely high but a new mine-risk-education program will inform people who live in dangerous areas how to minimize the threat of explosive remnants of war.

Azerbaijan, Country Profile

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

From 1988 to 1994, Azerbaijan was engaged in an armed conflict with its neighbor Armenia and armed forces of the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh. A ceasefire was negotiated in 1994, but a peace agreement is still underway. During the conflict, both sides used landmines. Forces from both Armenia and the self-declared Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh currently occupy about 20 percent of land within Azerbaijan, making demining difficult in those areas.

Nagorno-Karabakh, Country Profile

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

On the border between the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh and Azerbaijan, gunfire can be heard on a daily basis. These occurrences, along with the presence of landmines and unexploded ordnance, are reminders of the long-standing tensions between the populations of the self-proclaimed Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh and the country of Azerbaijan.

Cen Workshop Agreements For Test And Evaluation Of Humanitarian Demining Equipment, Franciska Borry

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

The Comité Européen de Normalisation has organised workshops to aid the establishment of standard methodologies for demining. This article discusses the workshops and the agreements reached in those workshops. The author includes a list of contacts for additional information on demining equipment and methods.

Needs Assessment In Lao Pdr, Jo Durham

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

This article describes the needs-assessment process and findings for mine-risk education in Lao PDR. Specific issues that arise are identifying those who are at risk, why they are at risk, and what can be done about it.

Serbia And Montenegro, Country Profile

The Journal of Conventional Weapons Destruction

The State Union of Serbia and Montenegro has faced many political and social difficulties since the dissolution of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. On 18 September 2003, the then-unified country of Serbia and Montenegro acceded to the Ottawa Convention, becoming a State Party on 1 March 2004. In June 2006, Montenegro declared independence from Serbia. Montenegro subsequently acceded to the Convention as a separate country; Serbia remained bound by the original agreement. Both Serbia and Montenegro are party to the Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons, having assumed the obligation of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Though a ratification bill was …

Ddasaccident469, Hd-Aid

Global CWD Repository

A mine blast incident occurred at approximately 08:35hrs on Sunday 01/07/2007 in the minefield 69270030. The deminer detonated a M35 Belgium anti personnel blast mine due in direct contact to the top of the mine. At the time of the incident the deminer was wearing the PPE (Body vest and Goggles). Deminer tried to lift the top soil crust by using heavy rake, The rake slipped and struck the mine resulting in mine blast. The deminer sustained no injury.

Report On The Follow-Up Assessment Into Operational Mine/Uxo Activities In Kosovo, Gichd

Global CWD Repository

In July-August 2006, the Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining (GICHD) conducted a mission to Kosovo at the request of the Office of the Kosovo Protection Corps Coordinator (OKPCC). The purpose of the mission was to assess concerns raised by the HALO Trust that the extent of the remaining landmine and unexploded ordnance (UXO) contamination in Kosovo had been underestimated and, thus, provided an inadequate basis for future planning. The assessment team reviewed a sample of task dossiers, including all those identified as a concern by the HALO Trust. They found some problems with information management in the Explosive Ordnance …

The Political Personalities Of 2008 Republican Presidential Contenders John Mccain And Rudy Giuliani, Aubrey Immelman

Psychology Faculty Publications

This paper presents the results of indirect assessments of the personalities of Arizona senator John McCain and former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani, contenders for the Republican Party nomination in the 2008 U.S. presidential election, from the conceptual perspective of personologist Theodore Millon.

Information concerning Sen. McCain and Mayor Giuliani was collected from biographical sources and published reports and synthesized into personality profiles using the second edition of the Millon Inventory of Diagnostic Criteria (MIDC), which yields 34 normal and maladaptive personality classifications congruent with Axis II of DSM–IV.

The personality profile yielded by the MIDC was analyzed on …

Ddasaccident468, Hd-Aid

Global CWD Repository

[The Victim] was part of an [Demining group] Mine Clearance Team was clearing an area of ground that they knew was definitely mined with PMN anti-personnel mines, laid very close together, at intervals of less than one metre between one mine and the next. The day was not a normal working day but nothing untoward had happened during the previous twenty-four hours that might affect operations at the site. [The Victim] was working unsupervised in the middle part of the site; the drills and procedures he was using were probably not in accordance with SOP and the site was inadequately …

Ddasaccident568, Hd-Aid

Global CWD Repository

On the morning of 21st June 07 at approximately 0616hrs [Demining group] BAC Teams commenced operations at CBU 071. At approximately 1104hrs, an uncontrolled explosion occurred in the plantation at UTM 728309/3676516. An [Demining group] searcher, Mr. [the Victim] who was conducting search operations in the area of the detonation was not directly involved in causing the detonation but he was in the immediate area of the detonation where he was conducting sub surface clearance operations.

Ddasaccident721, Hd-Aid

Global CWD Repository

The searcher was working in the lane when he had a need for toilet. The searcher closed his lane using a base stick (picture 1). The searcher put down his detector on the ground (picture 2). When the searcher was approximate 10 metres away the detonation occurred. The searcher fell down, turned on the side and become unconscious.

Ddasaccident569, Hd-Aid

Global CWD Repository

On 18 June 2007 at 1140 hrs (local time), [the Victim] a (Commercial demining group) Deminer, inadvertently caused an item of explosive ordnance (EO), which is considered to be a No. 4A anti-personnel mine, to activate, while conducting the manual mine clearance full excavation procedure. As a result of the explosion [the Victim] was thrown backwards by the blast wave and suffered a traumatic amputation of the right hand, a fractured right humerous and critical head and eye injuries.

Ddasaccident507, Hd-Aid

Global CWD Repository

The mentioned area is located to a hill side which is contaminated by AP mines and is a dense area of fragments. The area is steep and raining over the past years washed down the soil from the top of the hill and changed the position of some mines. [The Victim] deminer was excavating the ground while suddenly the accident happened. As the deminer had worn his PPE and visor, he did not receive any injuries and he is in good health situation. The investigation result shows that the negligence of the deminer and poor control of command group contribute …

Ddasaccident736, Hd-Aid

Global CWD Repository

Because the area was recently worked on (ploughed) and thus the lack of evidence, it cannot be confirmed that the BLU 63 was missed during clearance, its original depth or previous location and possible migration / importation with the compost.