Demining completed in Sisak-Moslavina County

Sisačko-Moslavina County has been cleared of mines, Minister of the Interior Davor Božinović handed over the demining certificate and the symbolic last mine to County Prefect Ivan Celjak on Friday and announced that all mine-suspected areas in Croatia will be demined by the end of the year.

The completion of demining work was carried out within the framework of the CROSS II (Croatian safe steps II) project, the results of which were presented at a ceremony in Sisak. Davor Božinović expressed satisfaction with the successful implementation of the project and thanked everyone who contributed.

A total of 48,720,648 square meters of forest and forest land were demined in the project. Mine-suspected areas endangered the lives and property of the local population, hindered their development and interfered with fire protection and state border surveillance.

From 1996 until the completion of the work this year, demining was carried out in 14 counties in the area of 121 cities and municipalities, and the financial value of the work is 1.17 billion euros.

“This is the day when we confirm that Sisak-Moslavina County is finally free of mine danger. The second most polluted area in Croatia is now completely safe. This is a huge step forward for the people who live here, but also for the effective surveillance of our border. I would like to thank everyone, especially the pyrotechnicians who, with their work, have made it possible for Croatia to become a mine-free country. This success is national, human and generational, and one of our most important victories,” said Davor Božinović, Minister of the Interior.

Neven Karas, Acting Director of the Civil Protection Directorate, said that 1,842 square kilometers have been demined in the area of Sisak-Moslavina County, and the value of the work is 160 million euros.

“Thanks to the CROSS I and CROSS II projects and other funds from the European Union, we are now very close to the goal of completing the demining of Croatia,” Karas pointed out.

Ivan Celjak expressed his satisfaction with the completion of the demining of the county. “Today, children can play freely, people can work in their fields, the most important thing is the feeling of security of the people and this is one of the biggest victories of the county since Croatia gained independence,” he said.

Since 1996, 610 people have been killed by mines in Croatia, 207 of whom died. While performing their jobs, 134 pyrotechnicians have been injured by mines, and 40 have died.

The completion of demining in Croatia next year will not stop the activities of the Croatian Mine Action Centre, it was said at the presentation of the results of the CROSS II project, which was implemented within the framework of the Competitiveness and Cohesion Programe 2021-2027.

With co-financing from grants from the European Regional Development Fund, with the maximum co-financing rate of eligible costs being 62 percent, the beneficiary of the grants is the Ministry of the Interior.

Source: HRT