SHUSHA, Azerbaijan, December 13. Azerbaijani people have again demonstrated their unity and solidarity, said Chairperson of the ‘Silent World’ Public Union Aida Safarova, taking part in protest action of representatives of Azerbaijan's non-governmental organizations (NGOs) near Shusha, close to the post of Russian peacekeepers, who are temporarily stationed in the area, Trend reports from the scene.
"Since yesterday, a protest action of representatives of NGOs and public activists has been taking place. Although it was cold at night, none of us left. We demand to stop the environmental terror and provide access to our environmental specialists for monitoring. We won’t leave here until peacekeeper commander Volkov will respond to our demands. We are ready for an indefinite protest," Safarova noted.
The action is being held against the inadmissibility of Azerbaijani specialists to the territory, to monitor the illegal exploitation of deposits in the area.
Previously, following the negotiations with the Russian peacekeepers' command on December 3 and 7, 2022, a group of experts from the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources, the State Property Service under the Ministry of Economy, and AzerGold CJSC on December 10, was going to begin the preliminary monitoring in accordance with the illegal exploitation of mineral deposits, as well as the emerging environmental and other consequences of this on the territory of Azerbaijan.
It was planned to inspect the environmental conditions at the 'Gizilbulagh' gold deposit and the 'Damirli' copper-molybdenum deposit, monitor various areas, organize cadastral property records, assess potential risks and threats to the environment, as well as to underground and surface water sources.
However, despite the group's arrival, accompanied by Russian peacekeepers, in the monitoring area, it faced provocations. The planned initial inspection and monitoring did not take place due to the fact that the Russian peacekeepers not only did not create necessary conditions and prevented for the entire process to carry on.