Azerbaijani official calls on Armenia for close cooperation related to hostages

Chairman of the Azerbaijani State Commission on Prisoners of War, Hostages and Missing People, Head of the State Security Service, Col-Gen Ali Naghiyev has said that Azerbaijan hopes that Armenia will give accurate maps of planted mines, as well as information about the fate of missing people and their burial places.

Naghiyev made the remarks at the international conference entitled "Increasing National and Global Efforts to Clarify the Fate of Missing Persons" which kicked off in Baku on September 18, according to APA.

He said that the long-term humanitarian crisis would be liquidated as a result of the search and identification of the remains of missing people on both sides.

“We are ready for full cooperation in this sphere. We hoped that Armenia would take a constructive position in this sphere in the past period, but our expectations were not fully met. Taking advantage of the opportunities at this conference, I call Yerevan for closer cooperation on issues related to prisoners of war and hostages,” Naghiyev added.

“Currently, some Armenian ideologists, citing history, raise the question of the impossibility of Armenians and Azerbaijanis living together,” the chairman of the State Commission said.

He noted that a question arises. How did the Armenian population live for a long time in Baku and other places in Azerbaijan, including Garabagh, in comfortable conditions, as respected citizens, and had sufficient authority in society before the outbreak of the military conflict?

“As opposed to mono-ethnic Armenia, Russians, Georgians, Jews and representatives of other nationalities living in Azerbaijan today are the basis of a multinational and multi-religious country. We urge the Armenian population to live together. Azerbaijan and Azerbaijanis do not want war. Today we are concerned about the speedy restoration of settlements destroyed as a result of military aggression, and the return of 750,000 residents who have become displaced to their houses as soon as possible,” Naghiyev said.

Meanwhile, Kyrgyz former Prime Minister Djoomart Otorbaev has also delivered a speech at the conference.

He said that the conference on missing people in Azerbaijan, where today the fate of almost 4,000 citizens still remains unclear, is very timely and necessary.

“This conference in Baku is very timely and necessary. Today it is necessary to focus on raising awareness on this issue, adopting global best practices, understanding how to make dialogue and discussion on this issue sustainable to achieve results,” he said.

Otorbaev noted that today this conference involves people having all the necessary experience in this issue.

He emphasised that it is necessary to continue working on this issue to help the Azerbaijani people and families learn about the fate of the missing.