Disclosure of all information by Armenia on the location of minefields is urgently needed to avoid further loss of human life

Written declaration No. 724 | Doc. 15326 | 08 October 2021

Signatories:

Mr Samad SEYIDOV, Azerbaijan, EC/DA ; Mr Ziya ALTUNYALDIZ, Turkey, NR ; Ms Nigar ARPADARAI, Azerbaijan, EC/DA ; Mr Kamil AYDIN, Turkey, NR ; Mr Ahmet BÜYÜKGÜMÜŞ, Turkey, NR ; Mr Ahmet Ünal ÇEVİKÖZ, Turkey, SOC ; Mr Mehmet Mehdi EKER, Turkey, NR ; Mr Yunus EMRE, Turkey, SOC ; Ms Sevinj FATALIYEVA, Azerbaijan, EC/DA ; Mr Erkin GADIRLI, Azerbaijan, EC/DA ; Mr Tural GANJALIYEV, Azerbaijan, EC/DA ; Ms Emine Nur GÜNAY, Turkey, NR ; Mr Sabir HAJIYEV, Azerbaijan, SOC ; Mr Hamid HAMID, Bulgaria, ALDE ; Mr Rafael HUSEYNOV, Azerbaijan, ALDE ; Mr Dzheyhan IBRYAMOV, Bulgaria ; Mr Kamal JAFAROV, Azerbaijan, EC/DA ; Ms Parvin KARIMZADA, Azerbaijan, EC/DA ; Mr Haluk KOÇ, Turkey, SOC ; Mr Asim MOLLAZADA, Azerbaijan, EC/DA ; Mr Fazil MUSTAFA, Azerbaijan, ALDE ; Ms Konul NURULLAYEVA, Azerbaijan, EC/DA ; Mr Halil ÖZŞAVLI, Turkey, NR ; Ms Catia POLIDORI, Italy, EPP/CD ; Ms Maria RIZZOTTI, Italy, EPP/CD ; Ms Selin SAYEK BÖKE, Turkey, SOC ; Mr Stefan SCHENNACH, Austria, SOC ; Ms Serap YAŞAR, Turkey, NR ; Mr Ahmet YILDIZ, Turkey, NR

This written declaration does not reflect the position of the Assembly; only of those members that have signed it. It will not be considered further by the Assembly.

We, the undersigned, declare the following:

The trilateral statement of the leaders of Azerbaijan, the Russian Federation and Armenia of 10 November 2020 has put an end to a long-standing conflict and opened up a unique prospect for achieving lasting peace and stability in the region.

However, the massive mine contamination in the liberated territories is seriously hampering the post-conflict rehabilitation and endangering the lives of innocent people. Most importantly, it affects the realisation of the inalienable right of hundreds of thousands of Azerbaijani IDPs to return to their homes in safety and dignity. Unfortunately, over the past seven months, more than 140 people have been killed or seriously wounded in mine explosions. Most recently, on 4 June 2021, three civilians, including two media representatives, lost their lives while on duty in a tragic incident in the Kalbajar district of Azerbaijan.

On 12 June 2021, Armenia provided Azerbaijan with maps of 97 000 landmines in the Aghdam region, while recognising that “this is a tiny part of the maps” in its possession. Given the urgency and gravity of this humanitarian problem, it is imperative for Armenia to disclose all remaining maps in order to avoid further death of innocent people and accelerate demining works.