(MENAFN- Trend News Agency) BAKU, Azerbaijan, November 18 . The
president of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, signed a Decree approving
the 'First State Program on the Great Return to Azerbaijan's
Liberated Territories' on November 18.
According to the state program, de-mining the region
and neutralizing unexploded ordnance is one of the most important
strategic directions for the construction and sustainable
development of the liberated territories.
Since the agreement of November 10, 2020, 268 people
have suffered from mines and unexploded ordnance. A total of 45
people died, including 35 civilians. Some 223 people, including 91
civilians, were injured. Currently, in a total of 59,055 hectares
of liberated territories in Azerbaijan, 76,810 mines and unexploded
ordnance have been neutralized.
According to the first 'Great Return' state program,
280 thousand hectares of liberated territories are going to be
de-mined by 2026. In accordance with the Action Plan, the
Azerbaijan National Agency for Mine Action is going to undertake
the task with the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Ministry of
Defense, and the Ministry of Emergency Situations. In addition,
from 2022 to 2025, a total of 215 thousand hectares of the
territories are planned to be de-mined.
The fact that Armenia did not disclose the maps of the
minefield is one of the main factors slowing down this process. The
Armenian military and political leadership continue to stick to the
terror policy, trying to prevent Azerbaijanis from returning to
their fatherland.
The Chairman of the Azerbaijan National Agency for
Mine Action, Vugar Suleymanov, told trend , that the international support for the
de-mining process in Azerbaijan's liberated territories is not
going as expected.
'Nevertheless, the work is currently underway in this
direction with the joint efforts of relevant governmental
institutions. We hope that the scope and the volume of the support
will increase soon,' he said.
According to Suleymanov, the establishment of the
Agency took place in accordance with the goals set in 2021. Both
the agency's human and technological potential is going to grow in
the near future. Thus, necessary equipment, tools, and technology
are planned to be bought.
'Moreover, the personnel of the Agency has increased,
and this process still continues. In our education center in
Goygol, we continue to prepare the new sappers, and team leaders,
as well as hold training on field engineering,' said
Suleymanov.
Armenia is interested in preventing Azerbaijanis from
returning to their homeland and therefore continues its mine
warfare policy. This country, on which there is no international
pressure, still manufactures mines. Such steps by Armenia, which
talks about peace in the region, are beyond understanding.
After liberating the occupied territories with its
military might and political will, Azerbaijan is now restoring its
lands with its own forces. Realization of the 'First State Program
on the Great Return to Azerbaijan's Liberated Territories' is more
likely to provide Azerbaijanis with a safe return to their
homeland.
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