BAKU, Azerbaijan, Sept. 4
Trend:
The aggressive Armenia is increasing the use of water resources in the occupied Azerbaijani territories as a means of ecological terror against the population living in the districts of Azerbaijan adjacent to the front line, Trend reports.
In this regard, the Azerbaijani community of the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan has sent a letter to the leadership of the Council of Europe.
The rivers flowing from the Upper Karabakh region, which is under the occupation of Armenia, are intentionally blocked by artificial dams, said the letter.
The letter highlights illegal construction of canals from the Sarsang reservoir in the direction of plain Karabakh.
Armenia, by using water resources, actually made it impossible for the population living in the lower reaches of the rivers to engage in farming, said the letter.
Thus, in winter, the Sarsang Dam opens and land suitable for agriculture is eroded by artificial mudflows. In summer, with increased demand for water, Armenia cuts off the watr flows, creating artificial drought, and thus causing serious damage to agriculture, as well as flora and fauna.
The letter, citing the final decision of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) on the ‘Chiragov and Others v. Armenia’ lawsuit and PACE resolution #2085 of 2016 - “Inhabitants of frontier regions of Azerbaijan are deliberately deprived of water”, exposes a gross violation of the norms and principles of international law by Armenia.
The community calls on the PACE to consider this issue in more detail, as well as to take immediate steps to instantly stop the insidious actions of Armenia, which are leading the entire region to humanitarian and environmental disaster.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.
The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on the withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno Karabakh and the surrounding districts.