Azerbaijan to host international conference on mine clearance

KARABAKH  28 March 2024 - 11:55

An international conference “Reducing the impact of mines on the environment - Mobilizing resources for a safe and green future” will be held in the southwestern district of Zangilan on May 30 and in the capital Baku on May 31.

Report informs that the organizer of the event, the Azerbaijan Mine Action Agency (ANAMA), has already begun preparatory work.

Foreign guests participating in the conference will be presented with memorable gifts embodying the history, culture of Azerbaijan, and the hospitality of the Azerbaijani people.

A trip of guests to the “smart” village of Agali in Zangilan is also planned.

The mine action in the liberated territories of Azerbaijan launched by ANAMA shortly after the 2020 war revealed the heavy contamination of the residential areas, agricultural lands, riverbanks, forests, and cemeteries with landmines and unexploded ordnance.

The accuracy of the previously provided information on minefields laid by Armenia in the Aghdam, Fuzuli, Jabrayil, and Zangilan districts of Azerbaijan was only 25%.

Since the Second Karabakh War in 2020, as many as 345 Azerbaijanis, including civilians and servicemen, have been victims of mine blasts that caused 65 deaths and 280 injuries.

In 2023, in joint efforts by ANAMA, the Defense Ministry, the Emergencies Ministry, and the State Border Service of Azerbaijan, around 53,082 hectares (128,700 acres) of territory in the liberated lands were cleared of mines. The number of neutralized anti-personnel mines, anti-tank mines, and unexploded ordnances were 3,495, 5,034, and 23,049, respectively. 

The government of Azerbaijan estimates at least one million mines laid by Armenia during the years of occupation. The Karabakh (Garabagh) and East Zangazur regions of Azerbaijan have been extensively mined since the 1990s by Armenian armed forces.

Caliber.Az