Colombian Forces to Train Ukrainian Military on Landmine Removal
CISR
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(Dialogo Americas) Landmines have killed 2,341 people in Colombia and injured 11,581 since 1990, according to the Colombian government. The nearly 60 years of internal conflict between the Colombian Military Forces, leftist groups, right-wing paramilitaries, and drug cartels has turned Colombia into one of the world’s most-mined countries, according to the United Nations. This made the country an international reference when it comes to landmine removal. That’s why, according to Colombia’s Minister of Defense Diego Molano, a team of Colombian soldiers will travel to Europe to train their Ukrainian counterparts on demining techniques.
“Colombia, as always, is committed to the values of freedom and human rights and in this case making a concrete contribution as a member and global partner country of NATO,” said Molano, after meeting with U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III, who invited Colombia to send the troops to Ukraine. “This training will be given by 11 military engineers who will go to a NATO member country, which is a neighbor of Ukraine,” Molano said via Twitter without clarifying which country.
