From left to right: an M14, Valmara 69, and VS-50

A land mine is an explosive device designed to be placed on or in the ground to explode when triggered by an operator or the proximity of a vehicle, person, or animal. The M14 mine is a US small anti-personnel Landmine first fielded in the late 1950s Valmara 69 or V-69 is an Italian bounding Anti-personnel mine manufactured by Valsella The VS-50 is an Italian circular plastic cased anti-personnel blast mine. An explosive material is a material that either is chemically or otherwise Energetically unstable or produces a sudden expansion of the material usually accompanied Distance is a numerical description of how far apart objects are The name originates from the practice of mining, where tunnels were dug under enemy fortifications or forces. Mining, undermining, or sapping was a Siege method used since antiquity against a Walled city, Fortress or Castle Fortifications are Military Constructions and Buildings designed for defense in Warfare Humans have constructed defensive works for These tunnels ("mines") were first collapsed to destroy fortifications above, and later filled with explosives and detonated. Land mines generally refer to devices specifically manufactured for this purpose, as distinguished from improvised explosive devices ("IEDs"). An improvised explosive device ( IED) is a Bomb constructed and deployed in ways other than in conventional Military action

Land mines are used to secure disputed borders or to restrict enemy movement in times of war. Tactically they serve a purpose similar to barbed wire or concrete dragon's teeth vehicle barriers, slowing or channeling the movement of attacking forces to the advantage of defenders. Military tactics ( Greek: Taktikē, the art of organizing an army are the techniques for using weapons or military units in combination for engaging and defeating Barbed wire, also known as barb wire (and frequently in dialect form spelled bob or bobbed) is a type of fencing Wire constructed During World War II the term " dragon's teeth " came to designate square-pyramidal fortifications used to impede the progress of mechanized armies From a military perspective, land mines serve as force multipliers, because they increase the efficacy or potency of a force without requiring more personnel. Force multiplication, in military usage refers to a combination of attributes or advantages which make a given force more effective than another force of comparable size

Land mines are controversial because they remain dangerous after the conflict in which they were deployed, killing and injuring civilians and rendering land impassable and unusable for decades. The International Campaign to Ban Landmines has sought to prohibit their use, culminating in the 1997 Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction, known informally as the Ottawa Treaty. The International Campaign to Ban Landmines is a coalition of Non-governmental organizations whose goal is to abolish the production and use of Anti-personnel mines The Ottawa Treaty or the Mine Ban Treaty, formally the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use Stockpiling Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their As of 2007, a total of 158 nations have agreed to the treaty. Thirty-seven countries have not agreed to the ban, including China, India, Russia and the United States. Talk People's Republic of China) PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA ARTICLE GUIDELINES India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending The United States of America —commonly referred to as the

Use

Land mines have two main uses - to create tactical barriers and to act as area-denial weapons. Area denial weapons are used to prevent an adversary from occupying or traversing an area of land The latter use seeks to deny access to land areas by military and civilian traffic. When used as a tactical barrier, they serve to deter direct attack from or over a defined and marked area. Without land mines in the demilitarized zones (DMZs) of hot spots such as Cyprus and Korea it is conceivable that small raiding parties could cross these zones, since simple physical barriers such as barbed wire may be more easily penetrated. Cyprus (Κύπρος transliterated: Kýpros,; Kıbrıs officially the Republic of Cyprus (Κυπριακή Δημοκρατία Kypriakī́ Dīmokratía Korea is a geographic area composed of two sovereign countries a civilization and a former state situated on the Korean Peninsula in East Asia.

Anti-personnel land mines or APLs are widely considered to be unethical weapons when used in the area-denial role, because their victims are commonly civilians, who are often killed or maimed long after a war has ended. According to anti-land mine campaigners, in Cambodia alone, area-denial mines have resulted in 35,000 amputees after the cessation of hostilities. The Kingdom of Cambodia ( formerly known as Kampuchea (, transliterated: Preăh Réachéanachâkr Kâmpŭchea) is a country in South East Removal of land mines is dangerous, slow and costly; however, some countries maintain that land mines are necessary to protect their soldiers in times of war and to suppress hostilities across demilitarized zones. Demining is the process of removing Land mines or Naval mines from an area

History

Mines mounted to "Rommel's asparagus" obstacles, during the Battle of Normandy.

Premodern development

Forces in ancient Rome sometimes dug small foot-sized holes, covered and armed with a sharpened spike. Rome ( Roma ˈroma Roma is the capital city of Italy and Lazio, and is Italy's largest and most populous city with more than 2 In the Middle Ages in Europe, small, four-pronged spiked devices called caltrops or crows' feet could be scattered on the ground to delay the advance of an enemy, but these devices were not explosive. A caltrop (also known as Caltrap, galtrop,or in Japanese: Makibishi or Tetsubishi.

Some sources report that the 3rd century Prime Minister Zhuge Liang of the Kingdom of Shu in China invented a landmine type device in the third century. This article is about the government position For other uses see Prime Minister (disambiguation. Zhuge Liang (181–234 was Chancellor of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period of China Shu Han ( Traditional Chinese: 蜀漢 Pinyin: Shǔ Hàn sometimes known as the Kingdom of Shu (蜀 shǔ was one of the Three Kingdoms competing China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National The 3rd century is the period from 201 to 300 in accordance with the Julian calendar in the Christian / Common Era. This claim was made by Jiao Yu in his Huolongjing Quanzhi (Fire-drake Manual in One Complete Volume), his preface written in 1412 AD (although the book was originally printed in the mid 14th century),^[1] and that Zhuge had used not only "fire weapons" but landmines in the Battle of Hulugu Valley against the forces of Sima Yi and his son Sima Zhao of the Wei Kingdom. Jiao Yu ( Traditional and Simplified Chinese: 焦玉 Wade-Giles: Chiao Yü, Hanyu Pinyin: Jiāo Yù) was a Chinese Sima Yi (179 - 251 was a strategist general and politician of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms era of China. Sima Zhao (211-265 courtesy name Zishang (子尚 was the son of chief military strategist Sima Yi of Cao Wei, during the Three Kingdoms Cao Wei ( was one of the empires that competed for control of China during the Three Kingdoms period ^[2] However, this claim is dubious, considering that gunpowder warfare did not exist in China until the advent of the flamethrower (Pen Huo Qi) in the 10th century, while the land mine was not seen in China until the late 13th century. Early Modern warfare is associated with the start of the widespread use of Gunpowder and the development of suitable weapons to use the explosive A flamethrower is a mechanical device designed to project a long controllable stream of Fire. The Pen Huo Qi is a double-piston pump Naphtha Flamethrower used in 919 in China during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period The Song Dynasty (宋朝 960–1279 CE provided some of the most significant technological advances in Chinese history, many of which came from talented statesmen ^[3]

Explosive landmines

East Asia

Explosive landmines were being used in 1277 AD by the Song Dynasty Chinese against an assault of the Mongols, who were besieging a city in southern China. The Song Dynasty ( Wade-Giles: Sung Ch'ao was a ruling dynasty in China between 960&ndash1279 CE it succeeded the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms The term Chinese people may refer to any of the following A person who resides in and holds citizenship of the People's Republic of China (including Hong Alternative meaning In Geology, North China (continent and South China (continent were two ancient landmasses that correspond to modern northern The invention of this detonated "enormous bomb" was accredited to one Lou Qianxia of the 13th century. ^[4] The famous 14th century Chinese text of the Huolongjing, which was the first to describe hollow cast iron cannonball shells filled with gunpowder,^[5] was also the first to describe the invention of the landmine in greater detail than references found in texts written beforehand. The Huolongjing ( Wade-Giles: Huo Lung Ching; Traditional Chinese: 火龍經 rendered by its translator into English as Cast iron usually refers to grey cast iron, but identifies a large group of Ferrous Alloys which solidify with a Eutectic. Round shot is an obsolete solid Projectile without explosive charge fired from Small arms or Cannons As the name implies round shot is spherical ^[4] This mid 14th century work during the late Yuan Dynasty and early Ming Dynasty (before 1375, when its co-editor Liu Ji died) stated that mines were made of cast iron and were spherical in shape, filled with either 'magic gunpowder', 'poison gunpowder', or 'blinding and burning gunpowder', any one of these compositions being suitable for use. The Yuan Dynasty ( Pinyin: Yuáncháo Dai Ön Ulus (Дай Юан Улс was a ruling Dynasty founded by the Mongol leader Kublai The Ming Dynasty ( or Empire of the Great Ming ( was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol -led Liu Ji ( July 1 1311 — 16 May 1375) Courtesy name Bowen (伯温 Posthumous name Wencheng (文成 ^[6] The wad of the mine was made of hard wood, carrying three different fuses in case of defective connection to the touch hole. ^[6] In those days, the Chinese relied upon command signals and carefully timed calculation of enemy movements into the minefield, since a long fuse had to be ignited by hand from the ambushers in a somewhat far-off location lying in wait. ^[7] However, the Huolongjing also describes landmines that were set off by enemy movement, called the 'ground-thunder explosive camp', one of the 'self-trespassing' (zifan) types, as the text says:

The Huolongjing describes the trigger device used for this as a 'steel wheel', which directed sparks of flame onto the connection of fuses running to the multiple-laid land mines underneath the carefully-hidden trap. ^[8] However, further description of how this flint device operated was not made until a Chinese text of 1606 AD revealed that a weight drive (common in medieval clockworks) had been used to work the 'steel wheel'. Flint (or flintstone) is a hard sedimentary Cryptocrystalline form of the Mineral Quartz, categorized as a variety of Chert Circadian Locomotor Output Cycles Kaput, or Clock is a gene which encodes proteins regulating Circadian rhythm. ^[8] The way in which the Chinese land mine trigger worked was a system of two steel wheels rotated by a falling weight, the chord of which was wound around their axle, and when the enemy stepped onto the disguised boards they released the pins that dropped the weights. ^[9] In terms of global significance, the first wheellock musket in Europe was sketched by Leonardo da Vinci around 1500 AD, although no use of metal flint for gunpowder weapons were known before that point in Europe. Wheellock, wheel-lock or wheel lock, is a mechanism for firing a Firearm. A musket is a muzzle -loaded Smoothbore Long gun, which is intended to be fired from the shoulder Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci ( April 15 1452 – May 2 1519 was an Italian Polymath, having been a scientist Mathematician, Engineer ^[8]

Besides the use of steel wheels providing sparks for the fuses, there were other methods used as well, such as the 'underground sky-soaring thunder'. ^[10] The Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) text of the Wu Bei Zhi (Treatise on Armament Technology), written by Mao Yuanyi in 1628, outlined the use of land mines that were triggered by the heat of a slow-burning incandescent material in an underground bowl placed directly above the train of fuses leading to the mines buried 3 ft beneath. The Ming Dynasty ( or Empire of the Great Ming ( was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol -led Incandescence is the emission of Light (visible Electromagnetic radiation) from a hot body due to its temperature ^[11] The booby trap of this mine system had a mound where weapons of halberds, pikes, and lances were dug in, meant to entice the enemy to walk up the small mound and claim their stolen prize of war booty. A booby trap is a device set up to be triggered by an unsuspecting victim A pike is a Pole weapon, a very long thrusting Spear used two-handed and used extensively by Infantry both for attacks on enemy foot soldiers and as The term lance has become a catchall for a variety of different Pole weapons based on the Spear. ^[10] When the weapons were removed from the mound, this movement disturbed the bowl beneath them where the butt ends of the staffs were, which in turn ignited the fuses. ^[11] According to the Wubei Huolongjing volume of the 17th century, the formula for this slow-burning incandescent material allowed it to burn continuously for 20 to 30 days without going out. ^[11] This formula included 1 lb of white sandal wood powder, 3 oz of iron rust (ferric oxide), 5 oz of 'white' charcoal powder (from quicklime), 2 oz of willow charcoal powder, 6 oz of dried, ground, and powdered red dates, and 3 oz of bran. Iron(III oxide —also known as ferric oxide, Hematite, red iron oxide, synthetic maghemite, colcothar, or simply Rust —is Calcium oxide ( CaO) commonly known as burnt lime, lime or quicklime, is a widely used Chemical compound. ^[11]

The Chinese also employed the use of the naval mine at sea and on the rivers of China and elsewhere in maritime battles. A naval mine is a self-contained Explosive device placed in water to destroy Ships or Submarines Unlike Depth charges mines are deposited

Western world

The first land mine in Europe was created by Pedro Navarro, a Spanish soldier, who used it in the settles of the Italian castles, in the beginning of the sixteenth century. Don Pedro Navarro Count of Oliveto ( Garde, Navarre, c 1460 – Castel Nuovo, Naples, 1528 was a Spanish engineer At Augsburg in 1573, a military engineer by the name of Samuel Zimmermann invented an extremely effective mine known as the fladdermine. Augsburg is an independent City in the south-west of Bavaria. It consisted of a fougasse (or later, sometimes a shell fougasse, that is, a fougasse loaded not with stones but with early black powder mortar shells, similar to large black powder hand grenades) activated by a snaphance or flintlock mechanism connected to a tripwire on the surface. A fougasse is an improvised mine constructed by making a hollow in the ground or rock and filling this with explosives (originally Black powder) and projectiles Snaphance or Snaphaunce is a particular type of mechanism for firing a gun (or a gun using that mechanism Flintlock is the general term for any Firearm based on the flintlock mechanism Combining the effects of a tripwire activated bounding fragmentation mine with a cluster bomb, it was devastating to massed attackers but required high maintenance due to the susceptibility of black powder to dampness. Cluster munitions or cluster bombs are air-dropped or ground-launched munitions that eject a number of smaller submunitions a cluster of bomblets Consequently it was mainly employed in the defenses of major fortifications, in which role it continued to be used until the 1870s. ^[12]

In Europe in the early eighteenth century, improvised land mines or booby traps were constructed in the form of bombs buried in shallow wells in the earth and covered with scrap metal and/or gravel to serve as shrapnel. The 18th century lasted from 1701 to 1800 in the Gregorian calendar, in accordance with the Anno Domini / Common Era numbering system Known in French as fougasse, the term is sometimes still used in the present day to describe such devices. A fougasse is an improvised mine constructed by making a hollow in the ground or rock and filling this with explosives (originally Black powder) and projectiles This technique was used in several European wars of the eighteenth Century, the American Revolution, and the American Civil War. In this article the inhabitants of the thirteen colonies that supported the American Revolution are primarily referred to as "Americans" with occasional references to "Patriots" Causes of the war See also Origins of the American Civil War, Timeline of events leading to the American Civil War The coexistence of a slave-owning South

British troops mining a road to halt the German advance in 1918.

The first modern mechanically fused high explosive anti-personnel land mines were created by Confederate troops of Brigadier General Gabriel J. The Confederate States of America (also called the Confederacy, the Confederate States, and CSA) formed as the government set up from 1861 Raines during the Battle of Yorktown in 1862. The Battle of Yorktown or Siege of Yorktown was fought from April 5 to May 4, 1862, as part of the Peninsula Campaign of the ^[13] (As a Captain, Raines had earlier employed explosive booby traps during the Seminole Wars in Florida in 1840. The Seminole Wars, also known as the Florida Wars, were three conflicts in Florida between various groups of Native Americans collectively known as ^[14]) Both mechanically and electrically fused "land torpedoes" were employed, although by the end of the war mechanical fuses had been found to be generally more reliable. Many of these designs were improvised in the field, especially from explosive shells, but by the end of the war nearly 2,000 standard pattern "Raines mines" had been deployed.

Improved designs of mines were created in Imperial Germany, circa 1912, and were copied and manufactured by all major participants in the First World War. The German Empire is the name commonly used in English to describe Germany from 1871 to 1918 when it was a semi- Constitutional monarchy: beginning with the Unification World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All In World War One, land mines were used notably at the start of the Battle of Passchendaele. "Passchendaele" redirects here For the 2008 film by that name see Passchendaele (film The 1917 Battle of Passchendaele, also known as Well before the war was over, the British were manufacturing land mines that contained poison gas instead of explosives. Chemical warfare involves using the toxic properties of Chemical substances to kill injure or incapacitate an enemy. Poison gas mines were manufactured at least until the 1980s in the Soviet Union. The 1980s was the decade spanning from January 1 1980 to December 31 1989. The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 The United States was known to have at least experimented with the concept in the 1950s. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The 1950s Decade refers to the years of 1950 to 1959 inclusive

Nuclear mines have also been developed, both land and naval varieties. A naval mine is a self-contained Explosive device placed in water to destroy Ships or Submarines Unlike Depth charges mines are deposited An example is the British Blue Peacock project, while another was the U. Blue Peacock —dubbed the "chicken-powered nuclear bomb"—was the Codename of a British Tactical nuclear weapon project in the 1950s with the S. Medium Atomic Demolition Munition. Medium Atomic Demolition Munition ( MADM) was a tactical Nuclear weapon developed by the United States during the Cold War.

Characteristics and functioning

Mine components

A land mine typically includes the following components:

• firing mechanism or other device (including anti-handling devices)
• detonator or igniter (sets off the booster charge)
• booster charge (may be attached to the fuse, or the igniter, or be part of the main charge)
• main charge (in a container, usually forms the body of the mine)
• casing (contains all of the above parts)

Firing mechanisms and initiating actions

A land mine can be triggered by a number of things including pressure, movement, sound, magnetism and vibration. Pressure (symbol 'p' is the force per unit Area applied to an object in a direction perpendicular to the surface A magnet (from Greek grc μαγνήτης λίθος " Magnesian stone" is a material or object that produces a Magnetic field. Oscillation is the repetitive variation typically in Time, of some measure about a central value (often a point of Equilibrium) or between two or more different states Anti-personnel mines commonly use the pressure of a person's foot as a trigger, but tripwires are also frequently employed. A tripwire is a passive Triggering mechanism usually/originally employed for military purposes although its principle has been used since prehistory for methods of trapping Most modern anti-vehicle mines use a magnetic trigger to enable it to detonate even if the tires or tracks did not touch it. Advanced mines are able to sense the difference between friendly and enemy types of vehicles by way of a built-in signature catalog. In Telecommunications, identification friend or foe (IFF is a Cryptographic identification System designed for command and control This will theoretically enable friendly forces to use the mined area while denying the enemy access.

Many mines combine the main trigger with a touch or tilt trigger to prevent enemy engineers from defusing it. Land mine designs tend to use as little metal as possible to make searching with a metal detector more difficult; land mines made mostly of plastic have the added advantage of being very inexpensive. Plastic is the general common term for a wide range of synthetic or semisynthetic organic solid materials suitable for the manufacture of industrial products

Some types of modern mines are designed to self-destruct, or chemically render themselves inert after a period of weeks or months to reduce the likelihood of civilian casualties at the conflict's end. A self-destruct is a mechanism which causes a device to destroy itself under a predefined set of circumstances However, these self-destruct mechanisms are not absolutely reliable, and most land mines laid historically are not equipped in this manner.

Anti-handling devices (AHD)

Main article: Anti-handling device

Anti-handling devices detonate the mine if someone attempts to lift, shift or disarm it. An Anti-handling device is an attachment to or integral part of a Landmine, designed to prevent tampering Detonation is a process of Supersonic Combustion in which a Shock wave is propagated forward due to energy release in a reaction zone behind it The intention is to hinder deminers by discouraging any attempts to clear minefields. There is a degree of overlap between the function of a boobytrap and an anti-handling device insofar as some mines have optional fuze pockets into which standard pull or pressure-release boobytrap firing devices can be screwed. A booby trap is a device set up to be triggered by an unsuspecting victim An Anti-handling device is an attachment to or integral part of a Landmine, designed to prevent tampering In an Explosive, Pyrotechnic device or military Munition, a fuse (or fuze) is the part of the device that initiates function Alternatively, some landmines may mimic a standard design, but actually be specifically intended to kill deminers e. g. the MC-3 and PMN-3 variants of the PMN mine. The PMN-1 and PMN-2 (sometimes referred to as the Black Widow) are blast type Anti-personnel mines designed and manufactured in Russia. Anti-handling devices can be found on both anti-personnel mines and anti-tank mines, either as an integral part of their design or as improvised add-ons. For this reason, the standard render-safe procedure for mines is often to destroy them in situ without attempting to lift them.

Anti-tank (AT) mines

Main article: Anti-tank mine

Section of an anti-tank mine. An anti-tank mine, (abbreviated to "AT mine" is a type of Land mine designed to damage or destroy vehicles including Tanks and Armoured fighting Note the yellow main charge wrapped around a red booster charge, and the secondary fuse well on the side of the mine designed for an anti-handling device. An Anti-handling device is an attachment to or integral part of a Landmine, designed to prevent tampering

Anti-tank mines are designed to immobilize or destroy vehicles and their occupants. An anti-tank mine, (abbreviated to "AT mine" is a type of Land mine designed to damage or destroy vehicles including Tanks and Armoured fighting In U. S. military jargon destroying the vehicles is referred to as a catastrophic kill (k-kill) while only disabling its movement is referred to as a mobility kill (m-kill). A Catastrophic kill, K-Kill or complete kill refers to damage inflicted on a vehicle by a weapon that renders it both unusable and unrepairable A mobility kill (or M-kill) in Armoured warfare refers to damage inflicted by a weapon on a vehicle that immobilises it but does not totally destroy it leaving

Anti-tank mines are typically larger than anti-personnel mines and require more pressure to detonate. Pressure (symbol 'p' is the force per unit Area applied to an object in a direction perpendicular to the surface The high trigger pressure (normally 100 kg (220 lb. )) prevents them from being set off by infantry or smaller vehicles of lesser importance. The Infantry is the oldest and most numerous of the Combat Arms in the Armed forces, and consists More modern anti-tank mines use shaped charges to focus and increase the armor penetration of the explosives. A shaped charge is an Explosive charge shaped to focus the effect of the explosive's energy

Anti-personnel (AP) mines

Main article: Anti-personnel mine

Anti-personnel mines are designed to kill or injure enemy combatants as opposed to destroying vehicles. Anti-personnel mines are a form of mines designed for use against humans as opposed to Anti-tank mines which are designed for use against vehicles They are often designed to injure rather than kill in order to increase the logistical support (evacuation, medical) burden on the opposing force. Some types of anti-personnel mines can also damage the tracks or wheels of armored vehicles.

Under the Ottawa Treaty, signatory countries undertake not to manufacture, stockpile or use anti-personnel mines. The Ottawa Treaty or the Mine Ban Treaty, formally the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use Stockpiling Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their As of 2007, it has been signed/accessioned by 155 countries. Forty states, including the People's Republic of China, Russian Federation and the United States, are not party to the Convention.

Mine warfare

A U. S. Army soldier removing the fuze from a Russian-made mine in order to clear a minefield outside of Fallujah, Iraq. In an Explosive, Pyrotechnic device or military Munition, a fuse (or fuze) is the part of the device that initiates function

In military science, minefields are considered a defensive or harassing weapon, used to slow the enemy down, to help deny certain terrain to the enemy, to focus enemy movement into kill zones, or to reduce morale by randomly attacking material and personnel. Military Science is the process of translating National defence policy to produce Military capability by employing Military scientists including Morale, also known as esprit de corps when discussing the morale of a group is an intangible term used for the capacity of people to maintain Belief in In some engagements during World War II, anti-tank mines accounted for half of all vehicles disabled.

Since combat engineers with mine-clearing equipment can clear a path through a minefield relatively quickly, mines are usually considered effective only if covered by fire. Combat engineering is a Combat service support role of using the knowledge tools and techniques of Engineering by troops in peace and war but specifically in

The extents of minefields are often marked with warning signs and cloth tape, to prevent friendly troops and non-combatants from entering them. Of course, sometimes terrain can be denied using dummy minefields. Most forces carefully record the location and disposition of their own minefields, because warning signs can be destroyed or removed, and minefields should eventually be cleared. Minefields may also have marked or unmarked safe routes to allow friendly movement through them.

Placing minefields without marking and recording them for later removal is considered uncivilized and is illegal under international conventions.

Artillery and aircraft scatterable mines allow minefields to be placed in front of moving formations of enemy units, including the reinforcement of minefields or other obstacles that have been breached by enemy engineers. They can also be used to cover the retreat of forces disengaging from the enemy, or for interdiction of supporting units to isolate front line units from resupply. In most cases these minefields consist of a combination of anti-tank and anti-personnel mines, with the anti-personnel mines making removal of the anti-tank mines more difficult. Mines of this type used by the United States are designed to self destruct after a preset period of time, reducing the requirement for mine clearing to only those mines whose self destruct system did not function. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the

Terrorism

None of the conventional tactics and norms of mine warfare applies when they are employed in a terrorist role:

• The mines are not used in a defensive role (for specific position or area).
• Mined areas are not marked.
• Mines are usually placed singly and not in groups covering an area.
• Mines are often left unattended (not covered by fire).

The normal aim of terrorism - and to a certain extent guerrilla warfare is to spread fear and panic. Terrorism is the systematic use of terror especially as a means of coercion Guerrilla warfare is the unconventional warfare and combat with which a small group of combatants use mobile tactics (ambushes raids etc This can be achieved by a single mine left on a civilian road to be detonated by a civilian target which is clearly quite different from the normal military application.

One example where such tactics were in employed is in the various Southern African conflicts during the 1970s and 1980s, specifically Angola, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa and Zimbabwe. Southern Africa is the Southernmost Region of the African Continent, variably defined by Geography or Geopolitics. Angola, officially the Republic of Angola (República de Angola Pronounced ʁɛˈpublikɐ dɨ ɐ̃ˈgɔlɐ Repubilika ya Ngola is a country in south-central Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique (Moçambique or República de Moçambique, ʁɛ'publikɐ d musɐ̃'bik is a country in southeastern Africa Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa on the Atlantic coast The Republic of South Africa (also known by other official names) is a country located at the southern tip of the continent of Africa See also Great Zimbabwe National Monument. For information about the March and June 2008 presidential elections see Zimbabwean presidential election

Laying mines

Minefield warning on the Golan Heights, still valid more than 40 years after creation of the field by the Syrian army

Minefields may be laid by several means. Borders of Israel The Golan Heights ( الجولان al-Jawlān, הגולן ha-Golan) is a strategic Plateau and mountainous The preferred, but most labour-intensive, way is to have engineers bury the mines, since this will make the mines practically invisible and reduce the number of mines needed to deny the enemy an area. Mines can be laid by specialized mine-laying vehicles. Mine-scattering shells may be fired by artillery from a distance of several tens of kilometers. Artillery (from French artillerie) is a military Combat Arm which employs any apparātus machine

Mines may be dropped from helicopters or airplanes, or ejected from cluster bombs or cruise missiles. History Since 400 AD Chinese children have played with bamboo flying toys. Overview Fixed-wing aircraft range from small training and recreational aircraft to Wide-body aircraft and military cargo aircraft. Cluster munitions or cluster bombs are air-dropped or ground-launched munitions that eject a number of smaller submunitions a cluster of bomblets A cruise missile is a guided Missile that carries an explosive payload and uses a lifting wing and a propulsion system usually a Jet engine, to allow

Anti-tank minefields can be scattered with anti-personnel mines to make clearing them manually more time-consuming; and anti-personnel minefields are scattered with anti-tank mines to prevent the use of armored vehicles to clear them quickly. Some anti-tank mine types are also able to be triggered by infantry, giving them a dual purpose even though their main and official intention is to work as anti-tank weapons.

Some minefields are specifically booby-trapped to make clearing them more dangerous. A booby trap is a device set up to be triggered by an unsuspecting victim Mixed anti-personnel and anti-tank minefields, double-stacked anti-tank mines, anti-personnel mines under anti-tank mines, and fuses separated from mines have all been used for this purpose.

Another specific use is to mine an aircraft runway immediately after it has been bombed in order to delay or discourage repair. Some cluster bombs combine these functions, one example is the British JP233 cluster bomb which includes munitions to damage (crater) the runway as well as anti-personnel mines in the same cluster bomb. The JP233 was a British Submunition delivery system consisting of a pair of large pods carrying several hundred submunitions designed to attack Runways

Demining (Detecting and removing)

Main article: Demining

School posters in Karabakh educating children on mines and UXO

Whereas the placing and arming of landmines is relatively inexpensive and simple, the process of detecting and removing them is typically expensive, slow, and dangerous. Demining is the process of removing Land mines or Naval mines from an area For the republic see Nagorno-Karabakh Republic Nagorno-Karabakh is a Region in the South Caucasus. Unexploded ordnance (or UXO s/ UXB s sometimes acronymized as UO) are explosive Weapons ( Bombs Bullets shells This is especially true of irregular warfare where mines were used on an ad hoc basis in unmarked areas. Ad hoc is a Latin phrase which means "for this [ Purpose ]" Anti-personnel mines are most difficult to find, due to their small size and the fact that many are made almost entirely of non-metallic materials specifically to escape detection. A Minimum metal mine is a Landmine that is designed to use the minimum amount of metal in its construction

Manual clearing remains the most effective technique for clearing mine fields, although hybrid techniques involving the use of animals and robots are being developed. Animals are desirable due to their strong sense of smell, which is more than capable of detecting a land mine ^[15].

Ironically, the laying of land mines inadvertently proved a positive development in Argentina and the Falkland Islands. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Argentina topics. This is because the mine fields laid by the sea during the Falklands War have become favorite places for penguins, which are too light to detonate the mines, and are therefore able to breed safely in areas where humans do not enter. The Falklands War (Guerra de las Malvinas/Guerra del Atlántico Sur also called the Falklands Conflict/Crisis, was fought in 1982 between Argentina and the These odd sanctuaries have proven so popular and lucrative for ecotourism that there has been some effort to prevent having the mines removed by offering to finance mine removal in regions with human populations where mines are a persistent danger, such as in Cambodia. Ecotourism, also known as ecological tourism, is a form of Tourism that appeals to ecologically and socially conscious individuals The Kingdom of Cambodia ( formerly known as Kampuchea (, transliterated: Preăh Réachéanachâkr Kâmpŭchea) is a country in South East [1]

Efforts to ban anti-personnel mines

Main article: Ottawa Treaty

Party states to the Ottawa Treaty

Argentine minefield at Port William, Falkland Islands created in 1982; clearance inhibited by boggy terrain

The Ottawa Treaty (Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Destruction) came into force on March 1, 1999. The Ottawa Treaty or the Mine Ban Treaty, formally the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use Stockpiling Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their The Ottawa Treaty or the Mine Ban Treaty, formally the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use Stockpiling Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their Events 86 BC - Lucius Cornelius Sulla, at the head of a Roman Republic army enters in Athens, removing the Tyrant Year 1999 ( MCMXCIX) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1999 Gregorian calendar) The treaty was the result of the leadership of the Government of Canada working with the International Campaign to Ban Landmines, launched in 1992. The International Campaign to Ban Landmines is a coalition of Non-governmental organizations whose goal is to abolish the production and use of Anti-personnel mines Year 1992 ( MCMXCII) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1992 Gregorian calendar) The campaign and its leader, Jody Williams, won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1997 for its efforts. Jody Williams (born October 9, 1950 in Brattleboro, Vermont) is an American Teacher and aid worker who received the The Nobel Peace Prize ( Swedish, Danish and Nobels fredspris is one of five Nobel Prizes Bequeathed by the Swedish industrialist and inventor Year 1997 ( MCMXCVII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1997 Gregorian calendar

The treaty does not include anti-tank mines, cluster bombs or claymore-type mines operated in command mode and focuses specifically on anti-personnel mines, because these pose the greatest long term (post-conflict) risk to humans and animals since they are typically designed to be triggered by any movement or pressure of only a few kilograms, whereas anti-tank mines require much more weight (or a combination of factors that would exclude humans). An anti-tank mine, (abbreviated to "AT mine" is a type of Land mine designed to damage or destroy vehicles including Tanks and Armoured fighting Cluster munitions or cluster bombs are air-dropped or ground-launched munitions that eject a number of smaller submunitions a cluster of bomblets The M18A1 Claymore is a directional Anti-personnel mine used by the U Existing stocks must be destroyed within four years of signing the treaty.

Signatories of the Ottawa Treaty agree that they will not use, develop, manufacture, stockpile or trade in anti-personnel land mines. The Ottawa Treaty or the Mine Ban Treaty, formally the Convention on the Prohibition of the Use Stockpiling Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their There were originally 122 signatories in 1997; currently, it has been signed by 155 countries and ratified by 153. Year 1997 ( MCMXCVII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1997 Gregorian calendar Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Another 40 have yet to sign on. United States is not one of the signatories. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the

There is a clause in the treaty, Article 3, which permits countries to retain land mines for use in training or development of countermeasures. 64 countries have taken this option.

As an alternative to an outright ban, 10 countries follow regulations that are contained in a 1996 amendment of Protocol II of the Convention on Conventional Weapons (CCW). Year 1996 ( MCMXCVI) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display full 1996 Gregorian calendar) The United Nations Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons ( CWC or CCWC) concluded at Geneva on October 10, 1980 and The countries are China, Finland, India, Israel, Morocco, Pakistan, South Korea, Sri Lanka, and the United States. Talk People's Republic of China) PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA ARTICLE GUIDELINES Finland, officially the Republic of Finland ( is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of northern Europe. India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Israel topics. Morocco (المغرب "al-Maghrib" officially the Kingdom of Morocco (المملكة المغربية is a country located in North Africa Pakistan () officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country located in South Asia, Southwest Asia, Middle East and South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea and often referred to as Korea ( Korean: 대한민국 tɛː Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka ( Sinhalese:, இலங்கை known as Ceylon before 1972 is an Island The United States of America —commonly referred to as the

Manufacturers

The ICBL has identified the following countries as manufacturing land mines as of August 2004. None are signatories of the Ottawa Treaty. [2]

• Burma [3]
• Cuba [4]
• India [5]
• Iran [6]
• Iraq (although production had presumably ceased since the invasion of 2003)[7]
• Nepal [8]
• North Korea [9]
• Pakistan [10]
• Russian Federation [11]
• Singapore [12]
• United States
• Vietnam [13]

Of other states which are thought to have manufactured landmines recently:

• Turkey is now a signatory of the Ottawa Treaty. Burma, officially the Union of Myanmar ( pjìdàunzṵ mjàmmà nàinŋàndɔ̀ is the largest country by geographical area in mainland Southeast Asia. The Republic of Cuba (ˈkjuːbə or) consists of the island of Cuba (the largest and second-most populous island of the Greater Antilles) Isla de la India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Iran topics. For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Iraq topics. Year 2003 ( MMIII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. Nepal (नेपाल) is a Landlocked country in South Asia. North Korea is the commonly used short form name for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (or DPRK) a State located in East Asia, Pakistan () officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country located in South Asia, Southwest Asia, Middle East and Russia (Россия Rossiya) or the Russian Federation ( Rossiyskaya Federatsiya) is a transcontinental Country extending Singapore The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Vietnam (ˌviːɛtˈnɑːm Việt Nam) officially Turkey (Türkiye known officially as the Republic of Turkey ( is a Eurasian Country that stretches [14]
• Egypt has unofficially stated that production ceased in 1988. This article is about the country of Egypt For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Egypt topics. [15]
• South Korea has stated that no mines have been produced since 2000. South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea and often referred to as Korea ( Korean: 대한민국 tɛː [16]
• An official from China stated in September 2003 that production has ceased there, since they have an ample stockpile. [17]
• In March 2004, a Libyan official stated that the country has never produced anti-personnel mines, but is known to have laid landmines in the 1970s and 1980s [18]
• A United Nations assessment mission to Peru reported that production of landmines in the country ceased in January 1999. "MMIV" redirects here For the Modest Mouse album see " Baron von Bullshit Rides Again " Libya ( ليبيا ar-Latn Lībiyā; Libyan vernacular: Lībya; Amazigh:) officially the Great Socialist People's Libyan Arab Year 1970 ( MCMLXX) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link shows full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Year 1980 ( MCMLXXX) was a Leap year starting on Tuesday (link displays the 1980 Gregorian calendar) The United Nations ( UN) is an International organization whose stated aims are to facilitate cooperation in International law, International security Peru (Perú Piruw Piruw officially the Republic of Peru ( reˈpuβlika del peˈɾu is a country in western South America. Peru was one of the original signatories and the treaty came into force for them in March 1999. [19]
• Denmark has officially declared having 6 factories producing landmines in 1995. The Kingdom of Denmark ( ˈd̥ænmɑɡ̊ (archaic ˈd̥anmɑːɡ̊ commonly known as Denmark, is a country in the Scandinavian region of northern Europe But production has ceased since ratifying the Ottawa treaty. [20]

See also

Minesweeper clothes

• List of landmines
• Demining
• Mine clearance agencies
• Improvised explosive device
• Naval mine
• Intelligent Munitions System

Mine-clearing organizations;

• HALO Trust
• DEMIRA Deutsche Minenräumer (German Mine Clearers)
• Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation
• United Nations

Landmine Victim Assistance

• Clear Path International
• Coffeelands Landmine Victims Trust

Anti-mine organizations

• Roots of Peace
• International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL)
• Adopt-A-Minefield
• The No More Landmines Trust

Notes

References

• Needham, Joseph (1986). Science and Civilization in China: Volume 5, Part 7. Taipei: Caves Books Ltd.

External links

• Landmine Monitor
• Landmine Action
• GICHD Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining
• E-Mine Electronic Mine Information Network by United Nations Mine Action Services
• Central Asia Health Review (CAHR). The United Nations ( UN) is an International organization whose stated aims are to facilitate cooperation in International law, International security The Central Asia Health Review (CAHR is a New York based independent online magazine covering public health and Human rights issues in Central Asia. World Observes International Mine Awareness and Assistance Day
• Mechanical Demining KMMCS
• Mine Action Investments by United Nations
• Afghanistan’s New Beginnings Programme (ANBP) of UNDP
• Mine Clearance in Cambodia by UNDP
• Goal 9 - De-mining, UXO and victim assistance from Cambodia Millennium Development Goals
• Banmines
• "Poem of the Land Mine Museum" video with documentary footage (2 min). The United Nations ( UN) is an International organization whose stated aims are to facilitate cooperation in International law, International security
• [21] Organization of American States Mine Action Program
• Women, War, Peace and Landmines by UNIFEM
• Landmine Safety Seeker A Landmine Safety Awareness guide book