The main phase of demining of the Black Sea may last up to five years: Navy of the Armed Forces of Ukraine
The Naval Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine have launched a large-scale mine clearance operation in the Black Sea. This process, according to the spokesman of the Navy of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Dmytro Pletenchuk, will be long and difficult. He announced this during the broadcast of the national telethon broadcast by the channel “We are Ukraine”.
Pletenchuk noted that the Navy of Ukraine has already created a specialized mine countermeasures division, and also prepared five mine countermeasures ships that will join the tasks in the future.
“Our staffs trained on the territory of Siveriz, using the available opportunities to prepare for this large-scale operation. Demining the water area is not only a Ukrainian problem, but a joint task for the countries of the Black Sea region, such as Romania, Bulgaria and Turkey. We hope for their support, and as well as the help of other partners”, – emphasized the spokesman.
The active part of the operation, which covers the clearing of key sea lanes and anchorages, will last several months. However, the main demining phase will take three to five years. And even after that, according to Pletenchuk, there will remain unsolved problems.
“Unfortunately, the process will not be completed even in five years. We are still faced with mines left over from the Second World War. This shows the scale of the task before us.” – he explained.
It will be recalled that the Black Sea has become one of the key theaters of the mine threat due to Russia’s aggression. In 2023, there were several incidents where merchant ships were blown up by drifting mines left by Russian forces.
On September 20, an explosion occurred near the port of Sulina on the Togolese-flagged vessel Seama, probably due to a mine strike.
On October 16, the Ali Najafov oil tanker belonging to Liberia was damaged while passing near the Sulin Canal.
On November 17, an incident was reported with the bulk carrier Georgia S, which is believed to have encountered a sea mine.
Against the background of growing threats, three NATO countries – Turkey, Romania and Bulgaria – came close to an agreement in November 2023 to create a joint force to combat mines that drift in the Black Sea. In January 2024, a memorandum was signed, which provides for the creation of a mine action task force between these countries.
Demining the Black Sea is a large-scale task that will require time, resources and cooperation with international partners. This issue is important to ensure the safety of shipping in the region and the recovery of economic activity.
