| Fun Land Mine Facts
Better not take a stroll around Basra
The watchdog group Landmine Monitor estimates that there are some 230-245 million antipersonnel mines in the arsenals of about 100 nations, with the biggest estimated to be China (110 million), Russia (60-70 million), United States (11.2 million), Ukraine (6.4 million), Pakistan (6 million), India (4-5 million), and Belarus (4.5 million).
The Center for International Rehabilitation reports that over 137 countries have signed the international Mine Ban Treaty, which entered into force on March 1, 1999. The United States, Russia, and China have not signed.
The US used antipersonnel mines in 1991 during the first Persian Gulf War. Then, 81 US military casualties were caused by antipersonnel mines, according to the International Campaign to Ban Land Mines. During the same war, the United States and its allies laid about one million mines along the Iraq-Kuwait border and around the Iraqi city of Basra, according to UNICEF. Prior to the recent invasion of Iraq, the US had at least 90,000 antipersonnel mines deployed in the Persian Gulf region, and the Pentagon admitted plans to use more of the weapons during the invasion.
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