Today, an event of International Mine Awareness and Mine Action Day was held at ADA University.

According to Eurasia Diary, the discussions have been attended by Aide to the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan - Head of the Foreign Policy Department of the Presidential Administration Hikmet Hajiyev, foreign ambassadors to Azerbaijan and civil society representatives.

Speaking at the event, Umud Mirzayev, President of the International Eurasia Press Fund, a key member of the UN ECOSOC, said that they were working to eliminate the threat of mines and unexploded ordnance, and to inform the world about Armenia's use of banned missiles and weapons. He expressed his deep gratitude to the organisers for paying attention to such an important issue.

“After the Great Patriotic War, our country faced a serious mine disaster. Combating the threat of landmines has never been more important or a priority. The International Eurasia Press Fund with UN ECOSOC General Consultative Status of which I am a member, has joined the Mine Action Programme in Azerbaijan since early 2000 in partnership with UNDP and the Government of Azerbaijan. It has implemented the Programme of Studying of the Negative Effect of Mines, Programme of Studying Needs of Mine Victims, the establishment of the Community Mine Action Team, Azerbaijan Mine Victims Association and a number of other important programmes.

He said that he has been proud to work shoulder-to-shoulder with the state and international organisations and local civil society organisations in order to eliminate the risk of mines and unexploded ordnance left at the war time, when the enemy was firing and shelling our civilian cities and villages, and to provide humanitarian assistance to people, as well as to inform the world about the enemy's actions against the international humanitarian law and international conventions. In addition, he said the crimes and illegal actions committed by the Armenian military units at that time have been presented to the world in a report prepared by the IEPF.

According to Mirzayev, thanks to the "iron fist, iron will" policy of the head of state, our army has achieved the Great Victory by liberating the occupied territories of Azerbaijan for 30 years.

"Our 44-day Patriotic War has fulfilled the long-cherished dream of our people. Although the enemy's arsenal over the ground was destroyed during the Great Patriotic War, the hidden enemies buried in the ground – the mines - still continue to take many lives. According to the International Committee of the Red Cross, 747 people have been mined in Nagorno-Karabakh until the Second Karabakh War. During that period, the number of landmines in Azerbaijan was about 3,000: 525 of them have been killed. In the last four months, about 40 civilians have been killed or seriously injured by landmines while visiting the occupied territories, their ancestral lands, cemeteries and their former places of residence. Mines that have been buried by Armenian military units, not for military purposes, but in civilian infrastructure, along the light lines, crossroads, courtyard entrances, cemeteries, riverbanks, and rural and urban paths pose a serious threat to civilians' lives."

The IEPF President noted that The Armenian side refuses to provide the Azerbaijani side with maps of the mined areas, without showing an adequate attitude to the creation of a climate of trust, in gross violation of the principles of civil and humanitarian law.

"This is in stark contrast to the 1949 Geneva Conventions and the 1977 Protocols. In this regard, we called on the international community, organised by the IEPF, together with civil society organisations operating in the war-torn areas of Azerbaijan. We are already receiving letters of support from various agencies on this issue. I believe that there is a serious need to strengthen cooperation between the government and civil society organisations, international organisations to take measures to prevent the threat of landmines."

U.Mirzayev stressed the importance of the role of the media and various sources of information at a time when we are facing a major mine disaster in the liberated territories.

“In this regard, the visits of various local and foreign media representatives are very important for the dissemination of reports that discourage our people from travelling to minefields. The IEPF works closely with a number of government agencies, especially ANAMA."

He said that awareness of mine danger, determining the coordinates of minefields & conducting research and demining are among the main priorities for Azerbaijan.  

"Today, international organisations and civil society organisations have come together around a single platform with the dream of a "mine-free world" in 2025. It is clear that the elimination of the risk of landmines in our liberated territories will take a long time. However, the support of international platforms and networks in the field of mine action is important in terms of increasing the attention of international organisations to this issue and creates great opportunities for our country.

The IEPF President added that in such a sensitive period, in order to save our country from this scourge, we have to ensure to keep mine operations on top of the agenda as well as to comprehensively and timely eliminate the mine threat by bringing together government, non-governmental organisations, international media and human rights organisations, scientific institutions and various other stakeholders. 

At the end of his speech, U.Mirzayev called on international organisations to promote peace and sustainable development in the region, to promote confidence-building activities, and not to be silent to the failure to provide Azerbaijan with maps of mined areas and the places that have been set with explosives as a death trap by Armenian military units.