Land mine Use in Ukraine
The types of landmines used in Ukraine since the full-scale Russian invasion began on February 24, 2022. It is not currently possible to systematically determine the number of landmines casualties or the humanitarian impact of new mine use since the invasion.
Russian forces have used at least seven types of antipersonnel mines in at least four regions of Ukraine: Donetsk, Kharkiv, Kyiv, and Sumy. This marks an unusual situation in which a country that is not party to the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty uses the weapon on the territory of a party to the treaty.
There is no credible information that Ukrainian government forces have used antipersonnel mines in violation of the Mine Ban Treaty since 2014 and into 2022.
Both Russian and Ukrainian forces have extensively used anti-vehicle mines (also called anti-tank mines) in at least six regions: Donetsk, Chernihiv, Kharkiv, Kyiv, Ode sa, Sumy, and Zaporizhzhia.
Hand-emplaced TM-62 series anti-vehicle mines appear to be the type most frequently used.
All manner of landmine delivery methods have been documented: hand-emplaced, mechanically laid, and remotely delivered. Several new, never-before-seen landmines have made their combat debut in the armed conflict, including some produced as late as 2021.
Russian forces have also emplaced many victim-activated booby-traps as they retreated from positions taken during the initial phase of the invasion. Booby-traps can function as antipersonnel mines when the fuse that is used is activated unintentionally by a person.
Landmine casualties have been reported in the conflict in Ukraine and the impact of new mine use can be seen in the denial of access to civilian homes, infrastructure, transportation routes, and agricultural lands. Evidence indicates that agricultural production is being affected by the use of landmines in fields and on rural paths and roads.
Types of Landmines Used in Ukraine in 2022
Human Rights Watch has identified at least seven types of antipersonnel mines and six types of anti-vehicle mines used through JW le 2022 in the war in Ukraine (see table below). Russia is the only party to the conflict known to have used antipersonnel mines and both Russia and Ukraine have used anti-vehicle mines. All manner of landmine delivery methods have been documented: hand-emplaced, mechanically laid, and remotely delivered.
All antipersonnel land mines used by Russian forces were manufactured by the Russian Federation or its predecessor state, the Soviet Union.
With some notable exceptions, most hand-emplaced landmines identified by Human Rights Watch are of Soviet-origin, with production markings from the 1970s and 1980s, and have been stockpiled by both Ukraine and Russia. More modem remotely delivered mines, some with markings indicating production in 2021, have also been used by Russian forces.
This never-before-seen -in-combat antipersonnel bounding fragmentation mine is equipped with a seismic proximity fuse that makes it prone to destruct when approached. The mine launches to a height of 1 to 1.5 meters then detonates midair, producing fragments that are lethal up to about 16 meters away. The POM-3 also has a self-destruct feature that sets the mine to explode after a certain period.
- MON-series antipersonnel mine
- OZM-72 antipersonnel mine
- PMN-4 antipersonnel mine
- POM-2 and POM-2R antipersonnel mines
- POM-3 antipersonnel mine
- PTKM-1R anti-vehicle mine
- PTM-1 and PTM-1G anti-vehicle mines
- PTM-4M anti-vehicle mine
- TM-62 series anti-vehicle mine
Victim-activated booby-traps
In mid-April 2022, Ukrainian police and emergency services in the Kharkiv region distributed numerous images of victim activated booby-traps that were emplaced by retreating Russian forces. One example of a victim-activated booby-trap used is a hand grenade with a trip wire attached as an initiating mechanism that when disturbed explodes the grenade
Other types of mines
Other types of mines reported in the Ukraine conflict by various sources and media outlets have not been included in this interim accounting for various reasons. Some have dubious sourcing, visual materials that appear to be staged, or appear to show mines from displays and inert models of mines and explosive remnants of war used for recognition or risk education training.
Impact of Landmines on Ukrainian Civilians
Landmine casualties have been reported in the conflict in Ukraine, but many may go unrecorded, especially if the victim was alone at the time of the incident. The impact of landmine use can also be seen in the denial of access to civilian homes, infrastructure, transportation routes, and agricultural lands.
During the 2022 sowing season, using tractors in agricultural fields and while traveling on rural paths and roads has become a high-risk activity. There have been at least 10 reports of tractors detonating landmines in the Kyiv region since the start of the conflict.
A farm owner in the village of Malaya Rohan, about four kilometers east of Kharkiv city, told Human Rights Watch that his employee was ploughing fields in mid-May when the tractor hit a landmine emplaced by Russian forces. The driver was not wounded, but the tractor was severely damaged. The incident took place in a field between Malaya Rohan and Stepanky village, both of which Russian forces had occupied from February 25 to March 26. A de-miner from Ukrainian emergency services who cleared the site said that Russian forces were responsible and that two more TM-62 mines were found 100 meters away on a dirt road in the field Local residents told Human Rights Watch that the withdrawing Russian forces did not clear the mines they had emplaced, provide any warnings to avoid the area, or share maps of the mine locations.
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