Demining in Ukraine to take 5-7 years: official

KIEV, May 20 (Xinhua) -- The work on clearing the territory of Ukraine from the landmines scattered during the conflict with Russia would take between five and seven years, the Interfax-Ukraine news agency reported Friday, citing a senior Ukrainian official.

About 300,000 square meters of Ukrainian territory are littered with remnants of war, Ukraine's Deputy Interior Minister Mary Akopyan said at the first meeting of the International Coordination Center for Humanitarian Demining of Ukraine.

Ukraine is working with the international community to make the process of clearing its territory from landmines more efficient, Akopyan said.

In particular, Kiev is in talks with its foreign partners on deploying a mine-clearing mission in Ukraine, she added.

Meanwhile, deputy head of the Ukrainian President's Office Ihor Zhovkva, who also participated in the meeting, said that Ukraine expects France, Canada, Finland, Switzerland, Sweden, the Czech Republic and other countries would support Ukraine's mine-clearing efforts.