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Ukraine and Syria Sign Deal on Demining and Drone-Based Mine Detection
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Ukraine and Syria have signed an intergovernmental agreement aimed at strengthening cooperation in humanitarian mine action, including land clearance, specialist training, and the use of Ukrainian technologies for detecting explosive hazards, Ukraine’s Ministry of Economy and Environment reported.
The agreement was signed in Damascus by Ukraine’s Deputy Minister of Economy and Environment Ihor Bezkaravainyi, who is visiting Syria, and Syria’s Deputy Minister for Emergency Situations and Disaster Management Mustafa Munir.
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Under the agreement, the two countries will cooperate on clearing land affected by hostilities to enable its return to productive use. Ukraine will also provide training for Syrian specialists in humanitarian demining and non-technical survey.
Bezkaravainyi said Ukraine’s experience and technologies could support Syria’s mine action efforts, particularly the use of drones for remote mine detection and mapping contaminated areas.
“For Ukraine, it is very important to share our experience in mine action with countries that, like us, have suffered contamination from explosive remnants of war. I am convinced that close cooperation in humanitarian demining is the beginning of broader cooperation between Ukraine and Syria that will not be limited to the mine action sector,” Bezkaravainyi said.
Munir, in turn, highlighted Ukraine’s progress in detecting and neutralizing explosive hazards, noting the direct impact of demining efforts on agriculture and global food security.
Ukraine has accumulated significant practical experience in clearing territory contaminated by mines and unexploded ordnance. In the first six months of 2026 alone, Ukrainian Defense Ministry demining teams inspected and cleared 4,715 hectares of liberated territory.
The Main Directorate of Mine Action, Civil Protection and Environmental Safety reported in July that the work covered 831.85 hectares of agricultural land, 186.33 kilometers of railway tracks, 16.14 kilometers of roads, and 6.72 kilometers of power lines.
During the same period, specialists detected and destroyed 1,914 explosive devices, helping restore access to farmland and critical infrastructure. Since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion, a total of 482,330 explosive items have been removed, according to the directorate.
Alongside conventional demining operations, Ukraine has increasingly incorporated domestically developed robotic systems into missions in hazardous battlefield environments. In June, the Defense Ministry announced the addition of the Vepr unmanned ground vehicle to Ukraine’s battlefield evacuation fleet.
The Vepr robotic ground complex, which can be used for logistics, casualty evacuation, and combat support, has been deployed on the frontline since 2024. Its developers have since upgraded the platform based on combat experience and feedback from Ukrainian troops, adapting it to evolving battlefield conditions.
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