Japan-Cambodia landmine initiative launched

ISTANBUL

Japan unveiled a collaborative initiative with Cambodia on Saturday to share expertise and technology for landmine removal with countries such as Ukraine, according to the Foreign Ministry.

Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa announced the Japan-Cambodia Landmine Initiative during a visit to Cambodia.

"She stated that Cambodia is a special partner to Japan in humanitarian mine action and expressed her desire to cooperate with Cambodia in raising awareness in the international community by taking advantage of opportunities such as the Fifth Review Conference of the Convention on the Prohibition of AntiPersonnel Mines (Ottawa Convention), in addition to the promotion of third-party assistance and development of demining technology," it said.

The initiative aims to leverage both country's expertise in mine removal to assist other nations struggling with the issue, including Ukraine.

Cambodia is one of the most heavily mined countries in the world. The CMAC (Cambodian Mine Action Center) estimates that 2,000 square kilometers (772 square miles) of land is contaminated with a combination of explosive weapons dropped during US aerial bombardments of the country and mines laid in the late 1970s and 1980s, particularly in what is known as the K5 mine belt that borders Thailand and Laos.

Japan has been cooperating with Cambodia in demining for more than 20 years.

Last November, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen told Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during a telephone call that his government was ready to dispatch deminers to war-torn Ukraine.

Russia launched a war on Ukraine in February 2022 resulting in deaths and injuries to thousands while millions were displaced.

The Southeast Asian nation has extracted more than 72,000 mines since 2018, clearing 66% of its targeted 641 kilometers of land.