Mine warfare

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Mine warfare is an area of military technology and doctrine, which deals with the use of, defense against, and removal of land mines, improvised explosive devices, and sea mines. The distinguishing characteristic of all of these weapons are that they are essentially passive; they are emplaced, and they wait for an enemy to come to them.

Minelaying is the process of deploying mines to be used against an adversary. Countermining covers the neutralization and removal of mines that threaten military forces. A classical naval term is "minesweeping", although that is somewhat obsolescent. Demining is oriented more to dealing with mines after conflict, as they threaten civilians.