BAKU, Azerbaijan, February 12. The minefield maps provided by Armenia are inaccurate, the Azerbaijan National Agency for Mine Action (ANAMA) told Trend.
Minefield maps, in accordance with ANAMA's technical requirements, detail reference locations, types, numbers, spacing, installation, and concealment methods. Nonetheless, the Armenian side's most recent submissions continue to display this information incorrectly and incompletely. After analyzing and processing these forms, it became clear that the information did not correspond to the actual minefields, rendering the coordinates of the reference sites erroneous and ineffectual.
The Armenian authorities handed Azerbaijan eight maps depicting minefields in Azerbaijani territory liberated from Armenian occupation. These publications mostly document minefields that encircle the Murovdag ridge in the Kalbajar region.
Overall, Armenia's minefield paperwork refers to areas of the regions along the preceding line of contact. However, no information is now accessible on the former line of contact that runs through the Khojavand, Tartar, and Goranboy districts or about the regions mined by Armenian armed units during their November 2020 withdrawal.
Armenia's data accuracy regarding minefields laid in the Aghdam, Fuzuli, Jabrayil, and Zangilan regions in 2021 was reported at 25 percent.
"Mine accident statistics demonstrate widespread contamination not only along the previous line of contact but also in populated areas, farmlands, riverbanks, forests, and cemeteries. Since the Second Karabakh War, 247 out of 345 mine victims have been injured or killed in incidents that occurred outside the previous line of contact. Widespread mining of civilian territories is a crime against humanity and a serious violation of international law," ANAMA stated.
Following the liberation of its lands, Azerbaijan, starting in November 2020, commenced operations on clearing its lands of mines, booby traps, and various weapons left behind by the Armenian troops.
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