Post Conflict Land Mine and Unexploded Explosive Ordnance (UXO) Contamination

Introduction

In all post-conflict environments the threat from residual barrier warfare, and abandoned or failed military explosive ordnance poses a significant threat to the civil community. History confirms that the Balkans have suffered acutely from this problem which has previously proved to be a major obstacle to the return to normality.

Background

A Serb soldier near the Albanian border, March 1999.It is known that the Serb military and para-military forces have sewn minefields in many areas of Kosovo. The areas north of the Albania border are particularly heavily contaminated with mines that were intended to deter forces entering Kosovo from that area. Soon after the end of the Kosovo conflict it become apparent that the area of contamination spreads well into Albanian territory along an area 300-400m deep and 120km long. Mines have been discovered in many areas close to the border but in particular near entry and exit routes used by the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) and in those areas where border incursions by Serb forces occurred. Additional threats from Unexploded Explosive Ordnance (UXO), abandoned munitions and NATO strikes on Serb border positions also exist although a significant proportion has already been cleared by the Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) organisation of the Albanian Armed Forces (AAF). Whilst considerable international assistance has been directed at clearing Kosovo, to date little has been directed or offered to assist in meeting Albania's needs.

Aim

The aim of this website is to outline the problems facing the Albanian authorities in dealing with the Mine and UXO contamination along the Albania/Kosovo border in a post-conflict environment and to attract a programme of international assistance.

The Threat

During OPERATION ALLIED FORCE a significant area of northern Albania which borders Kosovo was evacuated due to the threat of Serb military incursions and attacks by mortar and artillery including the Serbian Ababel 50 Multi-Launch Rocket System (MLRS). Many villages and military installations were abandoned during this period and returning civilians and military personnel discovered mines and UXO and have on many occasions become victims of them. Additionally some returning refugees and KLA forces chose to use some of the hundreds of unofficial border crossing points and have also become victims.

An Albanian Medical Officer gives field treatment to a Kosovar refugee on the border.The UXO threat was recognised with the commencement of the Ababel 50 rocket attacks and the discovery of a large amount of failed sub-munitions. The AAF responded quickly to this threat deploying teams to tackle the problem, initlialy in inhabited areas. The AAF have to date, destroyed more than 2,000 KB-1 sub-munitions. Due to the remoteness of the area and poor communications the full scale of the problem has only became apparent after the conflict. Initially information was gleaned from the Albanian Armed Forces (AAF), OSCE, ECMM and NGOs working in the area and the Albanian MOD tasked the newly formed EOD organisation to conduct a reconnaissance operation of Albanian border territory to identify the Threat and scale of contamination. This operation was conducted over the period 14-19 June 1999 and the NATO Explosive Ordnance Disposal Ammunition and Storage Training Team (EODASTT) debriefed the reconnaissance team over the period 19-22 June 1999. The following key facts were established:

  • The contamination of mines and UXO covers the border area from Shishtavec to an area north of Tropoja and covers some 120Km.
  • Main border crossing areas were heavily mined. In addition, mines have typically been placed randomly at unofficial border crossing routes used by the KLA and returning refugees after the Kosovo conflict. They have been placed on footpaths, gateways and other natural choke points. [Nuisance mining]
  • A high number of incidents - refugees, civilian, KLA and AAF have occurred since the beginning of OPERATION ALLIED FORCE.
  • That the AAF was under-resourced in terms of expertise and equipment to deal with the problem.
Shelling on the Albania border.

Post Conflict Mine and UXO Threat

The threat in northern Albania from explosive ordnance is twofold:

Mines

The Serbs are historically heavy users of both anti-personnel and anti-tank mines. In particular the Kosovo/Albania border is known to be heavily polluted with anti-personnel mines. To date the AAF has identified the following mines and associated firing devices of Serb origin within Albania:

UXO

The UXO threat within Albania is significant and UXOs have originated from Serb, Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) and NATO sources. In particular bomblets from NATO Cluster Bomb Unit (CBU) Munitions and the Serbian ORCAN (Ababel-50) Multi-Launch Rocket System (MRLS) are known to suffer failure rates between 20-30%. To date the AAF has identified the following UXO along the border region:

Full technical details of the mine and UXO threat can be found on the AMAE threat database.

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