Azerbaijan expects Armenia to submit correct maps of all land-mined websites – MFA

BAKU, Azerbaijan, January 25. Azerbaijan
expects Armenia to submit correct maps of all land-mined websites,
the Ministry of Overseas Affairs of Azerbaijan stated in a press release,
Development stories.

“The Ministry of Overseas Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan
takes notice of the assertion by the Nationwide Safety Service of
Armenia dated 25 January 2024, on the intention to current landmine
maps to Azerbaijan.

Armenia’s indiscriminate, large and purposeful planting of
landmines within the territories of Azerbaijan is without doubt one of the main
threats to large-scale post-conflict restoration and reconstruction
work, the civilian inhabitants residing in these territories, and the
return of IDPs and their peaceable lives of their properties. These
actions of Armenia will not be solely a battle crime, but additionally critical
violation of worldwide humanitarian regulation and Armenia’s
undertaken commitments.

Azerbaijan, each earlier than the 2020 Patriotic Warfare and throughout the
post-conflict interval, has repeatedly demanded Armenia to submit
landmine maps.

It’s well-known that the accuracy of landmine maps, the
existence of which was denied by Armenia following the signing of
the Trilateral Assertion dated 10 November 2020, however later was
submitted because of worldwide strain, is just 25%. We
have incessantly identified that the supplied maps are ineffective,
incomplete, and don’t precisely painting the fact on the
floor. Though these maps present that solely 400 thousand landmines
had been reportedly deployed in our territories, the precise variety of
landmines surpasses a million.

On the similar time, it’s value noting that greater than 55% of
landmine explosions lately occurred in places exterior
the areas the place maps had been supplied by Armenia. We remind that 342
of our fellow residents have turn into landmine victims for the reason that finish
of the Patriotic Warfare in 2020, with 65 people killed, together with
three journalists. Out of 65 lifeless, 50 had been civilians.

Additionally it is the truth that, even after 2020, Armenia deployed new
landmines of Armenia manufacturing inside and alongside the edges of
the territory of Azerbaijan the place Russian peacekeeping forces had been
briefly deployed, with about 500 thousand landmines planted. At
the identical time, this proves that there isn’t any foundation for the
statements of Armenia declaring that it has neither produced nor
exported landmines in latest a long time.

This assertion by the Armenian facet demonstrates that the
intention of this nation will not be a humanitarian one and this step
couldn’t be thought of as a confidence constructing measure.
Azerbaijan expects Armenia to submit correct maps of all
land-mined websites that haven’t but been totally introduced to
Azerbaijan.

Furthermore, pressing measures need to be taken by Armenia to supply
info on fates of 4000 lacking Azerbaijanis, and locations of
mass graves the place Azerbaijanis have been buried over the past 30
years, ” the assertion reads.