UNDP mine-action chief warns of millions of unexploded munitions in Ukraine, highlights drone use

Paul Heslop, chief technical adviser for the UNDP Mine Action Programme in Ukraine, warned that explosive hazards from both Soviet-era and modern munitions have left large swathes of the country at risk and said ongoing demining work has implications beyond Ukraine.

"You've got a frontline now that's well over 1000 kilometers," Heslop said, adding that "potentially up to a third of the country is suspected of being contaminated," a scale he likened to "the size of, like, 2 Frances." He spoke in a recorded interview about the scale and technical challenge of mine-action operations in Ukraine.

Heslop described a rule-of-thumb calculation to convey scale: "Even as a rule of thumb, if you say 10% of weapon systems fail ... if 30,000 items are being fired a day, that's 3,000 exploded bombs a day. You know, when the conflict gets to 1000 days, that's 3,000,000 unexploded bombs." He presented these arithmetic estimates as illustrative of potential scale rather than as independently verified counts.

He said the presence of mines and explosive hazards is "significantly not only affecting the Ukrainian economy, but the global economy," pointing to higher transport and commodity costs as potential ripple effects. "Me not doing my job right in Kyiv could mean kids starving in Somalia or Afghanistan," Heslop said, using the example to underline the humanitarian chain of impact he described.

On operational improvements, Heslop contrasted earlier limitations in equipment with current tools: "We had 1 GPS in the country when I deployed. We had 1 laptop for the whole program," he said, and added that in Ukraine teams are making "really good use of drone technology, be that on the ground, remote vehicles, removing vegetation, towing sensors, in the air, using different sensors." He said new sensors and remote systems are informing where to search and how to clear hazards more safely.

Heslop also reflected on the human costs and efforts of mine action: "I've seen heroism that, you know, I can't believe, and I've seen incidents that horrify me." He said he is proud of his work and "forever indebted to the people who gave me my first job in Mine Action," correcting a transcript rendering that used the word "Mind."

The remarks are a personal account and operational overview rather than a report of verified counts or formal UN statistics. Heslop framed many numbers as estimates or rule-of-thumb calculations and attributed interpretations to his professional judgment. He did not present a formal inventory or a verified total of unexploded ordnance.

Heslop's office and UNDP continue to work with partners on clearance, risk education and restoration activities in affected areas; he described technology adoption as one of the main ways teams are attempting to scale operations and reduce risk to deminers and civilians.

The interview provides first-person, operational perspective on the scale and challenges of mine action in Ukraine and does not include a formal timetable for clearance or a verified, official count of explosive remnants.