Publication

This article evaluates trends in efforts to advance research into technologies to improve and accelerate demining activities. The author refers to the Ottawa Treaty commitments to reduce the problem of landmines to zero by 2009 and notes that the gap between this goal and the resources available to meet it is too great to bridge. The role of the international mine action standards (IMAS) and impact surveys in strengthening the prioritization, planning and implementation of demining activities are also discussed. The author concludes that significant improvements of mine action techniques and efficiency are needed to improve the situation, but the mine problem will be long-term and may endure into the 22nd century.