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Russian combat engineers get government awards for mine clearance in Laos

MOSCOW, March 21. /TASS/. Combat engineers from Russia’s International Mine Action Center have received government awards for clearing Laos of unexploded US ordnance and air bombs left from the period of the war in Vietnam. The ceremony of giving government awards was held at the Center’s headquarters, the Defense Ministry of Russia reported on Thursday.

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"Today, the combat engineers of the International Mine Action Center of the Russian Armed Forces were honored at the permanent base after the completion of the tasks for the humanitarian mine clearance on the territory of the People’s Democratic Republic of Laos," the ministry said.

Some servicemen of the International Mine Action Center were given the government awards of the Russian Federation: the Suvorov and Zhukov medals and the Defense Ministry’s departmental awards: the medals "For Mine Clearance," "For Excellence in the Military Service" and others.

The government awards were handed over personally by Russia’s Engineering Troops Chief Lieutenant-General Yuri Stavitsky.

Russia’s military engineers returned from Laos on March 20. From October 2018, they cleared 104 hectares of Laotian territory of mines, uncovering more than 340 dangerous items, largely US cluster bombs.

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