Key
developments since May 2000: Moldova ratified the Mine Ban Treaty on 8
September 2000 and it entered into force on 1 March 2001. Moldova has begun
discussions on a project with the NATO Partnership for Peace Program for the
destruction of its landmine stockpile. Demining teams cleared 1,658 mines and
UXO in 2000, and 450 mines and UXO between January and May 2001. Between May and
August 2000, a Moldovan demining unit carried out mine clearance operations in
the safety zone of the Transdniester peacekeeping mission, clearing some 85
hectares of previously unused agricultural land.
Moldova signed the Mine Ban Treaty on 3 December
1997. On 27 April 2000, its Parliament ratified the
treaty,[1] which the President
signed on 14 June 2000.[2] On 8
September 2000, during the UN Millennium Summit, President Luchinskiy submitted
the instruments of ratification to the
UN.[3] The Mine Ban Treaty
entered into force for Moldova on 1 March 2001. Moldova has begun work to
develop implementing legislation for the Mine Ban Treaty; the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs has sent a request to the Ministry of Defense about its plans
for implementation of the treaty and destruction of mines in Moldova.
Moldova’s first transparency report required by Article 7 of the Mine Ban
Treaty is due by 28 August 2001.
Moldova did not attend the Second Meeting of
States Parties in September 2000, nor has it attended any intersessional
Standing Committee meetings related to the treaty because of lack of
resources.[4] Moldova was able
to take part in the February 2001 seminar on the “Destruction of PFM-1
Mines” in Budapest, with the support of Canada. Moldova voted for the UN
General Assembly resolution in support of the Mine Ban Treaty in November 2000,
as it had in previous years.
In April 2000, the Parliament also ratified the
Convention on Conventional Weapons and all of its Protocols, including Amended
Protocol II.[5] Moldova
deposited its instrument of ratification for Amended Protocol II on 16 July
2001. The government did not participate in the Second Annual Conference of
State Parties to Amended Protocol II in Geneva in December
2000.[6]
Production, Transfer, Stockpiling
Moldova is not believed to have produced, imported
or exported antipersonnel mines. It inherited its mine stocks from the USSR, and
the army has approximately 12,000 antipersonnelmines.[7] Types of
antipersonnel mines thought to be in Moldavian arsenals include: PMN, PMN-2,
PMN-4, OZM-72, MON-50, MON-90, MON-100, MON-200, PFM-l, PFM-1S, and POM-2S. The
deadline for Moldova to complete the destruction of its antipersonnel mine
stockpile is 1 March 2005.
Previously, representatives of the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs stated that Moldova would be able to destroy 10,000 mines on its
own, but would need international support for the other
2,000.[8] But after
ratification of the Mine Ban Treaty Moldova began exploring options with NATO
and its Maintenance and Supply Agency (NAMSA) for a joint project for mine
destruction. The destruction of mines in Moldova was discussed during the
international seminar on the destruction of PFM mines held in Budapest in
February 2001. The Budapest seminar was followed by a visit by NAMSA officials
to Moldova on 5-9 February for meetings with representatives of Ministry of
Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Defense. Canada and the Netherlands proposed
that a Trust Fund for destruction of Moldovan stocks be established after the
NAMSA visit, led by the Netherlands and supported by NAMSA. This would be the
second such project undertaken as a part of the Partnership for Peace Trust Fund
initiative, following a project launched in Albania to destroy some 1.6 million
antipersonnel mines.
On 22 February 2001 the Political-Military Steering
Committee of Partnership for Peace met with representatives of the Moldovan
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Defence to discuss the results of
the NAMSA visit and proposals for the safe destruction of Moldova’s mines
and munitions.[9] Work began on
the development of a Memorandum of Understanding to cover the destruction
project, which will also deal with site remediation. Material assistance and
training will be given to Moldovan military engineers to carry out the
destruction of the nearly 12,000 antipersonnel mines. Moldovan Foreign
Minister Nikolai Cermomaz and NATO official Peter Markey signed the memorandum
on 28 June 2001 in Brussels. Canada, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Poland, and
the United Kingdom have pledged
funds.[10]
Mine Clearance and Mine Awareness
Moldova is still affected by mines and UXO from
World War II and the Transdniester conflict in 1992. The Ministry of Defense
and the Police Demining Teams of the Ministry of Interior Affairs carry out the
demining of Moldova territory. For clearance purposes, Moldavian territory is
divided into four areas of responsibility; the demining teams from First, Second
and Third Infantry Brigades and one team from the Engineers Department of the
Ministry of Defense are responsible for demining these areas.
Demining teams
cleared 1,658 mines and UXO in 2000. Between January and May 2001, 450 mines
and UXO were cleared.[11]
Between May and August 2000,
a Moldovan demining unit carried out mine clearance operations in the safety
zone of the Transdniester peacekeeping mission in the area of Poghrebya. Over
345 mines and other explosive devices (including 326 antipersonnel mines) were
found and neutralized in approximately 85 hectares of valuable but previously
unused agricultural land. The government of Moldova reports that it has
cleared all the landmines on this territory laid during the Transdniester
conflict in 1992 and has thanked the U.S. government for its assistance in
providing equipment and training for Moldovan
deminers.[12]
Moldova
received humanitarian demining training in 1999 and 2000 through the U.S.
Department of Defense's “Train the Trainer” program, which provided
$114,000 in humanitarian demining assistance, including training of Moldovan
mine clearance
personnel.[13]
There
are no systematic mine awareness programs in Moldova. During mine clearance
operations, deminers meet with the local population and provide information
about what to do if they come upon mines or UXO.
Landmine Casualties and Survivor Assistance
There is no new public information on mine
incidents. Statistics on mine casualties are not public information. There is
only sketchy information on mine incidents in local
media.[14] On 14 April 2000,
the parliament enacted laws to protect the rights of the disabled and war
victims. At the same time, because of limited resources, Moldova has dismantled
some of elements of it social protection system for military veterans and war
victims.[15] In response, there
have been strikes and other actions by veterans and disabled groups. According
to national law, veterans must have full support from the government and local
authorities for accommodation, but many families of veterans and the disabled do
not have
houses.[16]
Pridnestrovie Moldavian Republic
The Transdniester region of Moldova declared
independence in 1990 and calls itself Pridnestrovie Moldavian Republic (PMR),
although it is not internationally recognized. Fighting broke out between
Moldova and PMR in 1992 and both sides used landmines.
PMR officials do not
accept laws and international agreements signed by Moldova as binding. Although
there has been no activity related to the Mine Ban Treaty, the President of PMR
Igor Smirnov and Minister of Foreign Affairs Valeriy Litskay have indicated a
willingness to discuss the landmine situation in the region. Over the past
months, officials from the UN, the EU, OSCE, the U.S., Canada, and various
European countries met with PMR leaders to discuss possible ways for the
withdrawal of Russian forces from PMR, demilitarization of the region, and the
destruction of stockpiles of mines, ammunition and other weapons.
In
November 2000, ICBL–Ukraine began raising awareness of the landmine issue
within the PMR Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Parliament, providing copies
of previous Landmine Monitor Reports and other landmine-related
information in both English and Russian.
Pridnestrovie was the scene of
heavy fighting during World War II, and there remain an unknown number of German
and Soviet mines and UXO still scattered about old battlefields. UXO constitutes
a more serious threat than landmines, the most dangerous areas being those where
trench battles took place. A substantial amount of UXO contamination has been
found in the Ribnitsa, Dubosary, Tiraspol and Bendery regions. The PMR Ministry
of Defense has one engineer battalion, which is responsible for demining
operations. Also Russian engineer units take part in mine action on PMR
territory.[17]
On 29 July
1992, in accordance with a peace agreement reached in Moscow, a Tri-Partite
Control Commission started its work. Peacekeeping forces are composed of a
Russian peacekeeping battalion and Helicopters wings, one battalion each from
Moldova and PMR and an International Military Observer Team, with ten officers
from Ukraine. The peacekeeping forces operate under the authority of the Joint
Control Commission, which is co-chaired by Moldova and PMR. The JCC coordinates
all peacekeeping activities including humanitarian demining.
The peacekeeping
mission has had good results with Moldova deminers in the “Safety
Zone,” but PMR officials disagree with policies of Canada, the U.S. and
other donor countries, which provide support only for Moldovan military
engineers, and not for others who provide demining operations in
Moldova/Pridnestrovie and in the Safety
Zone.[18]
During the
peacekeeping missions in PMR, Russian peacekeepers collected more than 300 small
arms, 72,000 explosive devices and cleared more 11,000 landmines and
UXO.[19]
During 2000, PMR
provided support for medical and social rehabilitation for victims of war and
military conflicts, including of veterans of all the various conflicts. The
government of PMR provided special cars for war
disabled.[20]
[1] Resolution of the
Parliament of Moldova, #973/14, 27 April
2000.
[2] Letter from the
Moldovan Ministry of Foreign Affairs to ICBL-Ukraine, 23 June
2000.
[3] Report of the Daily
Press Briefing of the Office of the Spokesman for the UN Secretary General, 15
September 2000.
[4] Letter
from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Moldova to ICBL-Ukraine, 5 November
2000.
[5] Resolution of the
Parliament of Moldova, #973/14, 27 April 2000.
[6] Letter of the Ministry
of Foreign Affairs of Moldova to ICBL-Ukraine, 20 January
2001.
[7] Statement of
Vladimir Lupan, Deputy of Head Department of European Security and Military
Policy, Foreign Ministry of Moldova, at the First International Conference on
Landmines in Russia and the CIS, Moscow, 27-28 May
1998.
[8] Interview with
Vladimir Lupan, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 17 February
2000.
[9] NATO Press Release,
“Safe Destruction of Anti-Personnel Landmines and Munitions in
Moldova,” 27 February
2001.
[10] Alexander Mineyev,
“NATO to help Moldova eliminate toxic liquid oxidant,” ITAR-TASS
(Brussels), 28 June
2001.
[11] Telephone
interview with Valerio Chiveli, officer in the Department of European Security
and Military Policy, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 21 June
2001.
[12] US Department of
State, Media Note, “Global Humanitarian Demining: Removal of Landmines in
Moldova,” 6 September
2000.
[13] This included
US$71,000 in FY 1999 and US$43,000 in FY 2000. U.S. Department of State,
“Demining Program Financing History,” dated 24 October 2000. See
also, U.S. Department of State, Office of the Spokesman, Media Note,
“Global Humanitarian Demining: Removal of Land Mines in Moldova,” 6
September 2000.
[14] See
Landmine Monitor Report 2000, pp.
776-777.
[15] Report of the
Union of Afghan War Veterans of Moldova, November
2000.
[16] “Our net
– Moldova,” Information agency report, 15 December
2000.
[17] Statement of
Vladimir Bodnar, Head of Defense Commission of the Parliament of PMR, 22 January
2001.
[18]
Ibid.
[19] Igor Petrov,
“Results of Peacekeeping Missions in Pridnestrovie,” Olvia Press
Agency Report, 28 March
2001.
[20] Sergey Nedelchik,
“The President of Transdniester Moldovan Republic met with the families of
those who died in Afghan war,” Olvia Press Agency Report, 22 November
2000.