(C) U.S. State Dept This story was originally published by U.S. State Dept and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . To Walk the Earth in Safety (2024) [1] [] Date: 2024-04 Download PDF (For Print Only) [15 MB]. To request a printed copy, email pm-cpa@state.gov. Terms and Symbols Cluster Munition Remnant Survey : The application of all reasonable effort, through non-technical survey and technical survey procedures, to identify and define a confirmed hazardous area impacted by unexploded cluster munition remnants. Explosive Ordnance Disposal Callout : Investigation and disposal activity of suspected explosive ordnance(s). : Investigation and disposal activity of suspected explosive ordnance(s). Explosive Ordnance Risk Education: Activities that seek to reduce the risk of injury from mines or explosive remnants of war by raising awareness through public information dissemination, education, and training. Activities that seek to reduce the risk of injury from mines or explosive remnants of war by raising awareness through public information dissemination, education, and training. Explosive Remnant of War: Abandoned explosive ordnance and unexploded ordnance. Abandoned explosive ordnance and unexploded ordnance. Implementing Partner : Organizations selected to implement specific grant agreements ]according to an agreed upon work plan. : Organizations selected to implement specific grant agreements ]according to an agreed upon work plan. Improvised Explosive Device: A device placed or fabricated in an improvised manner incorporating explosive material; destructive; lethal; noxious; incendiary; pyrotechnic materials or chemicals designed to destroy, disfigure, distract, or harass. They may incorporate military stores, but are normally devised from non-military components. A device placed or fabricated in an improvised manner incorporating explosive material; destructive; lethal; noxious; incendiary; pyrotechnic materials or chemicals designed to destroy, disfigure, distract, or harass. They may incorporate military stores, but are normally devised from non-military components. Landmine: An anti-personnel or anti-tank mine designed to explode by the presence, proximity or contact of a person and that will incapacitate, injure, or kill one or more persons. or a mine designed to detonate by the presence, proximity or contact of a vehicle. An anti-personnel or anti-tank mine designed to explode by the presence, proximity or contact of a person and that will incapacitate, injure, or kill one or more persons. or a mine designed to detonate by the presence, proximity or contact of a vehicle. Land Cleared: The area cleared through the removal and/or destruction of all specified explosive ordnance hazards to a specified depth. The area cleared through the removal and/or destruction of all specified explosive ordnance hazards to a specified depth. Man-Portable Air Defense System (MANPADS) and Anti-Tank Guided Missiles (ATGM): MANPADS are shoulder-fired surface-to-air missile consisting of a guided missile enclosed in a launch tube, a reusable trigger mechanism (“gripstock”), and a single-use battery or battery-cooling unit. ATGMs are guided missiles primarily designed to destroy armored military vehicles. (MANPADS) and (ATGM): MANPADS are shoulder-fired surface-to-air missile consisting of a guided missile enclosed in a launch tube, a reusable trigger mechanism (“gripstock”), and a single-use battery or battery-cooling unit. ATGMs are guided missiles primarily designed to destroy armored military vehicles. Physical Security and Stockpile Management : Standards for arms and ammunition maintenance including monitoring of stockpiles, training of qualified experts, facility upgrades and maintenance, and long-term planning for infrastructure, resources, and procurement associated with arms and ammunition. : Standards for arms and ammunition maintenance including monitoring of stockpiles, training of qualified experts, facility upgrades and maintenance, and long-term planning for infrastructure, resources, and procurement associated with arms and ammunition. Stockpile Management Training : The training of personnel in physical security and stockpile management. : The training of personnel in physical security and stockpile management. Small Arms Ammunition: Cartridges ranging in size from .22 caliber through 30 millimeter that are intended for various types of handheld or mounted weapons including rifles, pistols, revolvers, machine guns, and shotguns. Cartridges ranging in size from .22 caliber through 30 millimeter that are intended for various types of handheld or mounted weapons including rifles, pistols, revolvers, machine guns, and shotguns. Small Arms and Light Weapons : Man-portable weapons systems designed either for individual use, or by two or three persons serving as a crew. For example: handguns, grenades launchers, machine guns, etc. : Man-portable weapons systems designed either for individual use, or by two or three persons serving as a crew. For example: handguns, grenades launchers, machine guns, etc. Survivor Assistance : Aid, relief, and support provided to explosive ordnance survivors to reduce the immediate and long-term medical and psychological implications of their trauma. : Aid, relief, and support provided to explosive ordnance survivors to reduce the immediate and long-term medical and psychological implications of their trauma. Battle Area Clearance : The systematic and controlled clearance of hazardous areas where the hazards are known not to include mines. : The systematic and controlled clearance of hazardous areas where the hazards are known not to include mines. Explosive Hazards : Any object that could explode causing harm, including but not limited to explosive remnants of war, improvised explosive devices, landmines, ammunition, or unexploded ordnance. : Any object that could explode causing harm, including but not limited to explosive remnants of war, improvised explosive devices, landmines, ammunition, or unexploded ordnance. Explosive Ordnance Disposal : The detection, identification, evaluation, render safe, recovery and disposal of explosive ordnance. : The detection, identification, evaluation, render safe, recovery and disposal of explosive ordnance. Handheld Standoff Mine Detection System : A dual sensor, handheld mine detector that combines an electromagnetic induction sensor, ground penetrating radar, and sophisticated algorithms to detect landmines while rejecting most clutter, also known as false positives. : A dual sensor, handheld mine detector that combines an electromagnetic induction sensor, ground penetrating radar, and sophisticated algorithms to detect landmines while rejecting most clutter, also known as false positives. Humanitarian Mine Action : Clearance, risk education, survivor assistance, advocacy, and stockpile destruction of mines and explosive remnants of war by humanitarian organizations to restore peace and security at the community level. : Clearance, risk education, survivor assistance, advocacy, and stockpile destruction of mines and explosive remnants of war by humanitarian organizations to restore peace and security at the community level. International Ammunition Technical Guidelines : An internationally recognized frame of reference developed by the United Nations to achieve and demonstrate effective levels of safety and security of ammunition stockpiles. : An internationally recognized frame of reference developed by the United Nations to achieve and demonstrate effective levels of safety and security of ammunition stockpiles. International Mine Action Standards : The framework by which the Anti-personnel Mine Ban Convention and Convention on Cluster Munitions can be practically implemented. : The framework by which the and can be practically implemented. Unexploded Ordnance : Explosive ordnance that has been primed, fuzed, armed, or otherwise prepared for use or used. It may have been fired, dropped, launched, or projected, yet it remains unexploded either through malfunction or design or for any other reason. This does not include landmines or stockpiled ammunition and explosives. : Explosive ordnance that has been primed, fuzed, armed, or otherwise prepared for use or used. It may have been fired, dropped, launched, or projected, yet it remains unexploded either through malfunction or design or for any other reason. This does not include landmines or stockpiled ammunition and explosives. Weapons and Ammunition Destruction: The process of final conversion of weapons, ammunition and explosives into an inert state that can no longer function as designed. A Message from Assistant Secretary Jessica Lewis In this year’s edition of To Walk the Earth in Safety, we highlight the many ways that U.S. conventional weapons destruction assistance promotes post-conflict recovery. For example, our humanitarian demining funding enhances food security by helping to revitalize agricultural fields in countries like Sri Lanka and Vietnam. This funding is especially critical in Sri Lanka where more than 6 million people—nearly 30 percent of the population—are currently food-insecure. In Vietnam, our commitment to promoting agricultural security is a key component to successful post-conflict recovery, even decades after war ended. In Ukraine, Russia’s unlawful war and full-scale invasion has littered massive swaths of the country with landmines, unexploded ordnance, and improvised explosive devices. These explosive hazards exacerbate food insecurity by blocking access to farmland and impede restoration of damaged agricultural storage and processing facilities. Clearing landmines from Ukraine’s agricultural land is directly linked to global food security and is a prerequisite for Ukraine’s recovery. The United States has invested over $182 million since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to help the Government of Ukraine address this urgent humanitarian challenge. Our programs in Ukraine and around the world safely remove landmines and explosive remnants of war, helping displaced persons and refugees return home safely and facilitating economic security and prosperity. Additionally, we have also seen how clearance of landmines and explosive remnants of war help revitalize historical and cultural areas, enabling families to return to post-conflict communities. For example, in Mosul, Iraq, the historic Old City was riddled with notoriously deadly improvised explosive devices from ISIS militants. With the help of U.S. conventional weapons destruction funding and other international donor assistance, critical parts of the Old City have been cleared, allowing internally displaced persons to return to their homes, and helping to promote stability and security for war-torn communities. As a former teacher, I am particularly proud of our efforts to fund risk education to prevent and safeguard children from accidents as well as our funding for vocational training for mine survivors. For example, in Laos, we have funded explosive ordnance risk education via social media, radio, and print, and as part of secondary school curriculums. Additionally, in Zimbabwe, our funding has helped distribute risk education materials to schools in rural communities, simultaneously encouraging safe behavior around explosive hazards and improving literacy for more than 7,000 children. These programs not only save lives but improve education and livelihoods in post-conflict communities. Beyond threats posed by landmines and unexploded ordnance, communities often face dangers from poorly secured government stockpiles of small arms, light weapons, and ammunition. Through our conventional weapons destruction assistance, we help destroy obsolete weapons stockpiles and safeguard weapons to prevent them from being acquired by criminal organizations, terrorists, and violent extremist groups. By limiting bad actors’ means to create further chaos and instability, we help save lives and provide safety and security to civilians. Another critical element of U.S. conventional weapons destruction assistance involves supporting the responsible management of advanced conventional weapons, including man-portable air defense systems (MANPADS) and anti-tank guided missiles. While these have legitimate military uses, when in the hands of violent non-state actors, they pose a risk to human safety, economic stability, and global security, especially in post-conflict recovery environments. In coordination with allies and international organizations, our assistance helps partner countries safely secure, manage, and destroy obsolete weapons and train their staff on how to recognize and interdict these weapons and their components. Despite the global conflicts and challenges we continue to face, the U.S. Conventional Weapons Destruction Program continues to be a beacon of hope for many communities striving to recover from conflict. Our assistance detailed in this year’s To Walk the Earth in Safety report serves as a clear, tangible, and unmistakable symbol of the United States’ commitment to build a more safe, secure, and prosperous world and illustrates our steadfast effort to enable all people to walk the earth in safety. The United States’ Commitment to Conventional Weapons Destruction Some foreign governments’ stockpiles of aging, excess, poorly secured and improperly maintained small arms, light weapons, and ammunition threaten peace and prosperity globally, and can even impact the United States’ own national security. When obtained by criminals and terrorists, all of these munitions, including advanced types such as man-portable air defense systems (MANPADS), fuel violence and instability. In the wrong hands, MANPADS even menace global aviation. Stockpiles of decrepit ammunition may explode suddenly, devastating nearby communities, crippling infrastructure, and polluting water and farmland. Landmines and unexploded ammunition kill and maim people decades after conflicts end. Since the 1990s, the United States has recognized and confronted all of these deadly legacies regardless of which country or non-state actors have generated these “hidden killers.” Its goals are clear: protect innocent people, and help them regain safe access to their homes, fields, medical care, schools, business enterprises, and essential infrastructure such as water treatment plants. U.S. leadership in conventional weapons destruction fosters peacebuilding, food security, and even climate resilience, creating stronger partners to help promote our ideals throughout the world. The U.S. Government’s Collaborative Approach: Leveraging American Tax Dollars The United States is the world’s top supporter of conventional weapons destruction, providing more than $5.09 billion in assistance to more than 125 countries and areas since 1993. The Department of State, Department of Defense, and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) work with foreign governments, private companies, international organizations, and nongovernmental organizations to reduce excess small arms and light weapons and ammunition stockpiles (including MANPADS), implement physical security and stockpile management, and conduct humanitarian mine action. In fiscal year 2023, the Department of State invested more than $348 million* in conventional weapons destruction, and continued to lead the U.S. interagency MANPADS Task Force, which coordinates MANPADS counter-diversion efforts by the Departments of State, Defense, Homeland Security, and other stakeholders. Through these coordinated efforts, the U.S. Government helps partner nations eliminate excess MANPADS or better secure the systems they keep. Additionally, With funding from the Department of Defense, the Humanitarian Demining Research and Development Program improves conventional weapons destruction technologies, increasing the efficiency and safety of humanitarian demining worldwide. USAID’s Leahy War Victims Fund assists survivors of encounters with landmines and explosive remnants of war. Department of State Support for Conventional Weapons Destruction The Department of State has managed more than 76 percent (more than $3.86 billion) of the United States’ contribution to conventional weapons destruction since 1993, with three objectives: Enhance U.S. and international security by destroying and safeguarding small arms and light weapons, including MANPADS, at risk of proliferation to criminals, terrorists, and other violent non-state actors. Improve stability and prosperity by clearing landmines and explosive remnants of war and returning land to productive use. Build trust and deepen relationships with key partners to speed achievement of broader U.S. foreign policy objectives. Robust project performance standards, rigorous monitoring and evaluation, and a comprehensive planning process guide the Department’s Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement’s decisions and hold its implementing partners accountable for delivering results to the American people. The measurable, tangible results that flow from the U.S. Government’s commitment to conventional weapons destruction reinforce U.S. foreign policies. In addition, these programs help protect the lives and livelihoods of civilians worldwide so they may safely remain and thrive in their own countries. *Initial planned allocations 1993–2023 Global Overview of the U.S. Conventional Weapons Destruction Program FY23 Global Cumulative Performance Metrics ( Metrics include total U.S. assistance, not just key metrics from countries featured in the regional sections. ) More than $398.26 million in FY23 supported activities in 82 countries or areas 191,083,982 sq m (47,218 acres) of land cleared 4,409,998 explosive ordnance risk education recipients 71,576 survivor assistance recipients 16,269 explosive ordnance disposal call-outs 34,935 landmines cleared or destroyed 208,977 explosive remnants of war cleared or destroyed 3,598 IEDs or components cleared or destroyed 12,578 small arms and light weapons marked 2,869.07 metric tons of unserviceable ammunition destroyed 20,501 small arms and light weapons destroyed 1,070 personnel trained in stockpile management 76 armories built or rehabilitated 47 implementing partners Allocation of the more than $5.09 billion U.S. conventional weapons destruction funding by region (more than 125 countries) from FY93 to FY23 (dollars in thousands) [END] --- [1] Url: https://www.state.gov/reports/to-walk-the-earth-in-safety-2024/ Published and (C) by U.S. State Dept Content appears here under this condition or license: Public Domain. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/usstate/