The total number of mine victims in Azerbaijan has exceeded 3,500 over the past 30 years.
Operative Information Center-OMM reports that Azerbaijan’s Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov made the statement during the general debate of the 81st session of the UN General Assembly.
The minister said the widespread contamination of Azerbaijan’s territories with landmines and other explosive devices remains a serious obstacle: “This significantly complicates the recovery and return process. Since the territories were liberated from occupation in 2020, more than 400 people, including women and children, have become victims of landmines.”
Given the scale of the problem, Azerbaijan considers demining an essential prerequisite for ensuring human rights and has formally declared humanitarian demining its 18th National Sustainable Development Goal.
Likewise, determining the fate and whereabouts of approximately 4,000 Azerbaijanis who went missing as a result of the conflict is important not only in terms of accountability and the rights of victims and their families, but also from the perspective of post-conflict reconciliation and normalization.
“In the face of increasingly complex global challenges, our collective response must be inclusive, just and universal.
Azerbaijan’s own experience embodies precisely these principles. Our society is inherently multicultural and multiconfessional, shaped by centuries of peaceful coexistence among diverse ethnic, cultural and religious communities.”
Landmine clearance remains a major priority in Azerbaijan’s post-conflict reconstruction efforts, as unexploded ordnance continues to threaten civilians and hinder the safe return of displaced residents.
