Azerbaijan is among the countries most affected by landmines
globally, and the issue requires urgent international attention and
support, the US magazine The National Interest writes.
According to Azernews, the publication notes
that Azerbaijan is already conducting large-scale mine clearance
operations in its liberated areas, but the extent of mine
contamination necessitates coordinated international assistance.
The magazine recalls that around 3,500 Azerbaijani citizens,
including 361 children, have fallen victim to landmines to
date.
It further states that since the end of military operations in
November 2020, 388 people have been killed or injured by mines, the
vast majority of them civilians. These incidents have also delayed
the return of more than 700,000 internally displaced persons to
their homes and complicated efforts to locate the remains of
approximately 4,000 citizens missing since the war.
The article emphasizes Azerbaijan’s leading role in mine
clearance efforts, particularly through the Azerbaijan National
Agency for Mine Action (ANAMA), which has neutralized hundreds of
thousands of explosive devices. It also highlights Azerbaijan’s
cooperation with the United Nations, including hosting three global
conferences on mine action and launching, together with the UNDP in
May 2024, an initiative to establish an International Center of
Excellence and Training for Mine Action in Baku.
However, The National Interest stresses that the scale of the
humanitarian challenge makes mine action a global responsibility.
It notes that Azerbaijan has called on the UN, the Non-Aligned
Movement and other international platforms to recognize the mine
threat as an issue affecting peace, development, human rights and
environmental restoration.
The publication concludes that without eliminating the mine
threat, achieving key objectives such as poverty reduction,
education development and climate resilience will remain severely
constrained.