Om den kommende danske støtte til UNMAS aktiviteter i særligt Irak:
The engagement will provide a further Danish contribution to UNMAS’ activities in Iraq. The contribution
will be provided through the UN Voluntary Trust Fund (UN VTF) for Assistance in Mine Action, where funds
may be earmarked. In view of the immediate and foreseeable demands in Iraq, and the ability to work
closely with Iraqi authorities, the Danish support will initially be earmarked for Iraq (as core support for
UNMAS Iraq). The situation in Syria is more complex and the strategy is not yet fully clear, so the
possibilities for extending the support to Syria will be assessed during the mid-term review in 2017.
The engagement seeks to counter one of the key hindrances to an effective stabilisation input, which is the
large amount of unexploded ordnance and, in particular, improvised explosive devices (IEDs) that have
been left behind as Da’esh has retreated. Without concerted efforts to identify and clear ordnance and IEDs
from residential and administrative areas, other critical stabilisation efforts will not be able to deliver and
displaced people will not be able to return to their homes safely and, if they do, they will face significant
risks to their well-being and livelihoods. There is evidence from both countries that, in the absence of
qualified mine clearance operators, citizens are attempting to remove devices themselves, often with
serious consequences.
In Iraq, the situation is particularly acute in areas liberated from Da’esh where IEDs have been used
tactically to hinder the advance of Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) and subsequent recovery of areas. The capacity
of the national and international non-military response to the UXO and IED threat is currently well below
that needed for the task, although the full extent of this is unknown. Inter alia, there is a widespread
concern that forthcoming ISF advances in Fallujah and Mosul could require substantially more capacity than
is currently available. In such a context, the current inability of Iraqi authorities to declare areas safe from
contamination will effectively act as a brake on stabilisation efforts (such as those provided through UNDP’s
Funding Facility for Immediate Stabilisation, which Denmark also supports). This may, in itself, be de-
stabilising as it opens up a vacuum following liberation unless local government control is able to be
promptly re-established on the ground.
UNMAS Iraq is currently building up its capacity to sponsor a multi-year comprehensive programme
response using multi-donor contributions with the twin aim of (a) reducing the risk of explosive hazards in
direct support of stabilisation planning and delivery and (b) increasing national (Iraqi) capacities to manage
the overall threat of newly identified explosive hazards in these areas. The expectation is that “blended”
solutions that utilise a mix of contracted commercial and NGO capacities alongside a developing Iraqi
capacity will be needed.