Russian military engineers defuse over 580 US cluster bombs, ordnance in Laos

MOSCOW (TASS): Russian combat engineers have defused over 580 explosive objects in Laos, the Russian Defense Ministry reported on Tuesday.

“Servicemen of the International Anti-Mine Center of the Russian Armed Forces discovered over 580 explosive objects during a humanitarian mine clearance in the area of Thong Hai Hin airport in the Xiangkhouang province (the Lao People’s Democratic Republic),” the statement said.

According to the agency, the explosive objects found by the Russian deminers are of the BLU-26, BLU-63 and BLU-3B types of US-made aerial cluster bombs as well as artillery ordnance of various calibers.

The mission’s personnel is equipped with advanced means of protection and tools for detection of explosive devices. “The specialists of the Russian team use modern domestic tools for search, detection and protection, such as the IMP-3 induction mine detector, the MG -1I deep-earth metal detector, the MBI-P2 magnetometric bomb detector and the PPO-2I subsurface detector,” the Defense Ministry specified.

According to the decision of Russian President Vladimir Putin, a team of 32 combat engineers from the Russian Armed Forces’ International Anti-Mine Center was sent to Laos to assist in demining the country’s territory. This is already the third mine clearance mission of the Russian military engineers to Laos.