Azerbaijan, Baku, Feb. 4/ Trend J. Babayeva/ Georgia has no opportunities as Azerbaijan to clean the Kura River, Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources of Azerbaijan Huseyn Bagirov briefed the media on Feb. 4.
"Pollution of the Kura River by Georgia is connected with old Soviet clean-up facilities. Georgia has no funds to buy new facilities. Georgian economy does not allow solving the issue in short terms," Bagirov said.
The Kura is the largest river in Caucasus. It flows into the Caspian Sea and stretches through three countries, such as Turkey, Georgia and Azerbaijan.
The Kura River is polluted in borders of Georgian territory, according to monthly monitoring of the National Monitoring Department on Environment under Azerbaijan's Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources.
Georgia admits that it is polluting the Kura River, Minister said.
"Georgian Ministry of Ecology charged industrial enterprises to prepare a plan of cleaning. Azerbaijani side is suggested to control the process," he said.
Azerbaijan ratified Helsinki Convention on the protection and use of trans-boundary watercourses and international lakes to settle problems of trans-boundary basins at regional level within the international norms.
The problem is aggravated because Armenia and Georgia haven't joined the Convention.
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