RUSSIAN RESCUE PARTIES SPACES MINES








MOSCOW, 12 March.  (RIA "Nowosti" rIA-"Nowosti"-Korrespondent Juri
Jumaschew).  Group of the humanitarian mine clearing operation of the
disaster protection Ministry of Russia began its work in the field of
application in the Kosovo.  The group consists of 24 pioneers and 8
mine trackhounds and operates for the moment intensive clearing-up,
was reported from the pressedienst of the Ministry mentioned.

The first field of application of the Russian pioneers is in the space
of the settlement Vitina, in the east of the Kosovos.  Meanwhile
however the pioneers cannot vacate the area directly from mines, since
the schneedecke did not thaw out yet.

The Russian specialists are in the Kosovo on behalf of the UN
Entminungszentrums in use.  This time the coworkers of the Russian
disaster control Ministry will operate according to John McFlenagan,
director of the center mentioned, in the sector of the German Federal
Republic on the boundary to Albania.  The Russian humanitarian
Entminungsgruppe altogether presumably remains in the Kosovo within 6
months.

The feuerprobe existed the pioneers of this Ministry of the RF still
1999.  At that time they defused more than 2,000 explosion-dangerous
objects.  In the previous year 22 pioneers of the disaster control
Ministry checked altogether 36 mine fields on a surface of more than
155,000 square meters and defused almost 2,000 mines of different
purpose and different caliber.  That was an absolute record under the
16 ingeniertechnischen groups of pioneers of different countries,
which took part to the Entminung in the Kosovo in the context of the
UN center mentioned, stressed the pressedienst.