MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Argentine de-mining monitors arrive Saturday in Falklands

On Saturday two Argentine retired military officers will arrive in the Falkland Islands to participate in a field survey related to the mines clearance feasibility study agreed between Argentina and the United Kingdom.

An official release from the Argentine Ministry of Foreign Affairs states that retired Navy Commander Carlos Nielsen Enemark and retired Colonel Jose Antonio Cimmaurusti are scheduled to remain in the Islands for the next three weeks, together with two United Kingdom military officers to monitor the field survey of several humanitarian clearance and environment experts belonging to Cranfield University, which has been specifically contracted for the job by both countries. The two Argentine officials have both worked on International Humanitarian Law and De-mining issues.

UK monitors will be Lt Col Robin Swanson from the Ministry of Defence and Capt Iain Lamont from the Royal School of Military Engineering.

The mine clearance feasibility study was agreed following the exchange of notes "under the sovereignty formula of October 11, 2001 and August 3 of this year", underlines the release.

With data collected during the preliminary stage of the study and that from the field work to be addressed in the coming weeks, next February Cranfield University will be presenting an official report to the Joint Argentine-British Working Party.

The report will be essential for the drafting of the final report on the Feasibility Study which then will be presented to both governments. Most mines in the Falklands are anti personnel.

The next meeting of the JWP will take place in February 2007, in London.

Last early November, in Paris, the JWP held its twelfth meeting for the clearance of Falklands land mines.

At the time Argentine Representative Minister Guillermo R. Rossi, signed the contract with Cranfield University, represented by Alastair McAslan, whose offer had been previously selected by the JWP and approved by the British and Argentine Governments.

Alastair McAslan is the Director of Cranfield Mine Action and over the past five years has been involved in the development of policy, strategic planning and improved mine action operational procedures at the United Nations in New York and the Geneva International Centre for Humanitarian Demining.

He is an expert on the relationship between landmine contamination and environmental security, and the role of the armed forces in support of humanitarian de-mining.

McAslan was Project Director of the United Nations review and revision of international mine action standards.