Regional center for training divers
for underwater demining
RCUD.me
WHAT IS UNDERWATER DEMINING?
Underwater mines are explosive devices intended to damage and sink ships, submarines and other vessels or prevent them from using a specific territory. Underwater
mines in the West appeared in the 16th century, but their use in naval warfare is associated with the American Revolution, during which an American wooden submarine laid primitive mines around British ships anchored in New York Harbor. The widespread use of underwater mines began in World War I, when British and later American troops laid tens of thousands of mines to stop German ships and submarines, and the Germans laid mines in British coastal waters. Allied troops lost 568 ships to damage caused by underwater mines, and the German Navy
lost 150 ships and 40 submarines. In World War II, between 600,000 and 1,000,000 underwater mines were laid, causing the destruction of: 650 Allied ships and 1,100 ships belonging to the Axis powers.
In the wars that were fought in the world after World War II, a large number of underwater mines were used. For example, during the Iraq-Iran conflict of 1980-88, both warring parties intensively laid mines in the Persian Gulf, and later Iraq continued to mine certain areas of the Gulf. For example, during the Tanker War (1987), the American frigate USS Samuel B. Roberts was almost sunk after being hit by a Russian-made underwater mine. The damage to the ship was estimated at $96 million and the price of one mine was $1,500. In the same waters in 1991, the carrier
The helicopter carrier USS Tripoli was damaged by an Iraqi contact mine, as was another smaller American ship, with total damage estimated at $110 million. The effectiveness of underwater mines is evidenced by the fact that after World War II, underwater mines damaged 14 US Navy ships, while air attacks and artillery fire damaged four ships.
After World War II, underwater mines and other explosive devices were used or threatened in a variety of scenarios that illustrate their potential use by terrorists. The "Patriot Diver" crisis of January 1980 illustrates how a terrorist threat using underwater mines can have a dramatic impact on maritime commerce. An unknown person called "Patriot Diver" telephoned the police to report that he had laid mines in the Sacramento River (US). This threat caused an immediate halt to shipping and a minesweeper searched the river for four days. The economic loss from this disruption was estimated at hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Since the 1970s, the Tamil Tigers have used underwater mines to attack government and commercial ships. Underwater mines have also been used in Nicaragua (two ships were sunk in 1984), and Argentina used them in the Falklands War. The August Mine Crisis of the summer of 1984 best illustrates how easily mines can be used for terrorist acts at sea. From 19 July to 13 September, twenty-three ships reported damage from underwater mines in the Red Sea and the Suez Canal. This situation prompted a rapid international mine clearance operation involving Egypt, France, the United Kingdom, Italy, the Netherlands, the Soviet Union, and the United States.
It was later proven that the crisis was caused by Libya, which chartered the commercial ship Feri Ghat from which the mines were thrown into the water.
Also illustrative is the 2004 event on Lake Pontchartrain in Louisiana (USA).
a floating bag was discovered. When it was determined that the bag contained several kilograms of explosives with a time fuse, this device was destroyed by a cannon shell. The most likely target of this device was Senator Kerry, who was campaigning on the lake at the time. Today, the Mediterranean and the Near and Middle East contain a large amount of underwater mines and other unexploded ordnance, including ammunition, grenades, aerial bombs, etc. After the end of major war operations, major shipping lanes were cleared. Unfortunately,
The widespread use of underwater mines and other unexploded ordnance has largely cleared major roads, while large areas of the coast have been left without proper control. These unexploded ordnance themselves pose a danger to vessels, fishermen, divers and tourism. They can also be used for terrorist attacks in their original form or by using the explosives contained in them.
International conventions related to humanitarian demining
For the first time, the use of underwater mines in naval warfare was restricted by the Eighth Hague Convention of 18 October 1907.
The Ottawa Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on Their Destruction is the first international treaty adopted for the purpose of eliminating these weapons. The Convention entered into force in 1999, having been ratified by 133 countries; as of 10 May 2009, 156 countries had signed the Convention while thirty-seven countries had not signed the Convention, including the United States, China and Russia.
International activities related to underwater demining
Since the early 1990s, the International Community has made a firm commitment and taken concrete steps to mitigate the impact of mines and other explosive devices on affected countries and peoples. However, until now, relatively little attention has been paid to underwater demining. One reason for this is that, unlike land-based demining, there is still no coordinated international action to remove underwater mines. The UN Inter-Agency Mine Action Strategy 2006-2010 does not directly address the problem of underwater mines, but it does address explosive remnants of war. In this regard, the RCUD Strategy and the development goals can serve as a basis for promoting the need for coordinated international action to remove and destroy underwater explosive devices and other underwater obstacles that affect the safe use of seas, rivers and lakes.
UNPoA (United Nations Programme of Action to prevent, combat and eradicate the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons in all its aspects) – The United Nations Programme of Action to prevent, combat and eradicate the illicit trade in small arms and light weapons in all its aspects. The Office of the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Political-Military Activities (PM/WRA) has a developed program of support for humanitarian demining. Although the WRA strategy published in 2004 focused on landmines, it also promotes support for the destruction of other types of explosive ordnance, including underwater explosive ordnance. Through the provision of significant financial resources, this office supports demining activities worldwide. Through its support to the International Trust Fund for Demining and Mine Victims Assistance (ITF), the Office of The EU has so far adopted two strategies related to mines and unexploded explosive devices: EC Mine Action Strategy and Programming 2002-2004 and EC Mine Action Strategy and Multi-annual Programming 2005-2007 In the period 2002-2008 the European
The Union has assisted 43 countries in mine and UXO activities with a total of over €300 million. In order to continue the continuity of activities in this area, the EU adopts the Guidelines on European Community Mine Action 2008-2013. This document sets out the guidelines for EU policy in this area: to ensure synergy between security and development cooperation; to encourage the integration of the principles of joint work and ownership in mine action and to popularise best practices. Following the repeal of two regulations specifically relating to Anti-personnel landmines (APL) and explosive remnants of war (ERW), the bulk of EU assistance, which concerns technical and financial assistance, is channelled through various external assistance instruments, geographical instruments such as the Development Cooperation Instrument (DCI), the European Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument (ENPI) and the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA). In ACP countries, assistance should be provided through the European Development Fund (EDF). Thematic instruments such as the Humanitarian Aid Instrument and the Instrument for Stabilisation can also be used but only with certain restrictions.
NATO partnership for peace trust fund, Projekti Trust Funda su finansirani kroz dobrovoljno učešce individualnih članova saveznika i partnera. Ovi projekti obično uključuju i blisku saradnju sa ostalim relevantnim organizacijama. Projekti mogu biti inicirani od strane zemalja članica ili partnera. Svaki projekat je vođen od strane zemlje koja je lider i koja je u obavezi da obezbijedi političku i finansijsku podršku za projekat. Od zemlje koja
The beneficiary is expected to provide maximum support for the project. Between 2000 and 2008, around €40 million was provided for the implementation of Trust Fund projects. The Trust Fund policy is an integral part of the Partnership for Peace (PfP) programme. Any member of this programme may request assistance. The use of the Trust Fund has been extended to the countries of the Mediterranean and the wider Middle East region participating in NATO's Mediterranean Dialogue and the Istanbul Cooperation Initiative, as well as Afghanistan. The South Eastern and Eastern Europe Clearinghouse for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (SEESAC) was established on 8 May 2002 in Belgrade to support the implementation of the Stability Pact and other important commitments related to arms control. SEESAC is an integral part of the Regional Implementation Plan for Combating the Trafficking of Small Arms and Light Weapons, formulated and adopted by the Stability Pact in November 2001, with the aim of stopping the flow and availability of SALW in the region.
HUMANITARIAN UNDERWATER DEMINING
Over a period of over two decades, RCUD underwater deminers have demined over three million square meters of sea, rivers and lakes, from which they
removed and destroyed over 200 tons of explosive devices left on the waterbed after various war conflicts, not only on the territory of Montenegro but also in the waters of other countries.
HUMANITARIAN LAND DEMINING
RCUD deminers, in cooperation with demining companies from the Republic of Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, carried out mine reconnaissance and
removal of anti-personnel mines along the Montenegrin border.
RCUD's activities in the field of underwater and land mine clearance contributed to Montenegro being declared a country free of anti-personnel mines by the International Community in 2007.
RCUD.me
In accordance with Article 5 of the Decision on the establishment of RCUD, the activities of RCUD are:
The main activity of RCUD is 85.59 Other education, which specifically includes:
- organization and implementation of diver training;
- implementation of professional training and professional development programs for divers, officials and other persons in the field of underwater demining and other diving activities.
In addition to the activities referred to in paragraph 1 of this article, the Company also performs the following activities:
- organization of underwater demining activities;
- saving human lives, material and cultural assets;
- searching for and retrieving sunken things, that is, objects and drowned persons;
- maintaining divers' fitness through training dives, in accordance with international standard diving procedures, scientific and technical achievements in the field of protection and rescue;
- training divers for underwater demining and other underwater work;
- detection and removal of unexploded ordnance underwater;
- underwater video and photo recording of pipelines and other installations with the aim of detecting and preventing water pollution;
- planning, organizing and implementing/performing demining procedures with the aim of training and improving the skills of mine action divers, as well as for the purpose of performing underwater demining;
- carrying out research activities in the sea for the purpose of protecting, valorizing and establishing protection zones in the sea (marine ecosystem);
- performing other tasks in accordance with the law and the Company's statute.
Regulations in the field of adult education shall apply to the implementation of the program referred to in paragraph 1, indent 2 of this Article, knowledge testing, and the issuance of documents.
FOUR BASIC TASKS OF RCUD
TRAININGS
RCUD instructors have trained hundreds of professional divers in various diving disciplines, contributing to strengthening capacities for underwater work and humanitarian missions around the world.
UNDERWATER DEMINING
RCUD has demined over 3 million square meters of underwater land and removed more than 200 tons of explosive devices, significantly improving safety in the waters of Montenegro and other countries.
WATER RESCUE
RCUD divers participated in over 200 underwater search operations, saving human lives and protecting material assets in challenging conditions on rivers, lakes and the sea.
UNDERWATER RESEARCH
RCUD initiated and implemented research that discovered numerous underwater archaeological sites, contributing to the preservation of cultural heritage and the development of underwater science in Montenegro.
CONTACT
RCUD Montenegro
81000 Podgorica
George Washington 18/5
Phone: +382 31 683 477
Mob. tel: +382 69 346 132
E-mail: rcud@t-com.me
www.rcud.co.me
INSTRUCTORS
Underwater demining
Technical diving
English 
Crnogorski