Netherlands supports humanitarian demining in Ukraine

Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Ukraine Jennes de Mol said this to an Ukrinform correspondent in The Hague.

“A new program of the Dutch government sets a very ambitious goal – a mine-free world by 2025. In Ukraine, we support the HALO Trust [the world’s largest humanitarian mine clearance organization], which employs more than 400 men and women from Donetsk and Luhansk regions, many of whom are residents of mined areas. To date, they have cleared more than seven million square meters of land mines. This program has two main goals: to reduce the number of civilian casualties and to support the social and economic development of the region. A year ago I visited the demining center in Novoluhanske. I am still very impressed by the work of the HALO team," the ambassador said.

According to him, the long-term goal of the Dutch policy in Ukraine is to strengthen stability, security and prosperity in the country, especially in Donbas.

In addition to Ukraine, the Netherlands helps in mine clearance in Iraq, Afghanistan, Lebanon, Libya and Syria.

As reported, the Netherlands provided Ukraine with EUR 4 million for humanitarian demining in Donbas.

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