Rafael Bagherov “Illegal Exploitation of Natural Resources of Azerbaijan” – Al-Hiwar Al-Jazaeryya

The continued illegal exploitation of the natural resources of Azerbaijan is a source of legitimate concern for the entire Azerbaijani society and this has caused deep discontent in the Republic of Azerbaijan.

The illegal exploitation of natural resources and its harsh environmental impact is not something hypothetical for Azerbaijani society. We have witnessed countless such cases during the occupation of our lands. The impact has now become crystal clear in the areas liberated from occupation and reflected in the reports of the competent international organizations.

Of the 151 mineral deposits identified in the lands before the occupation, 52 were exploited for the first time in the period from 1993 to 2020. Moreover, many mining operations were expanded and intensified prior to the conflict.

Mining and quarrying operations were conducted without environmental supervision, including non-treatment of effluents and site rehabilitation. This has resulted in negative environmental effects such as:

1) Deforestation and land degradation

2) Suspended sediment pollution (turbidity) in rivers

3) Chemical pollution of water, soil and living organisms

Azerbaijan relied on the dialogue to address concerns about the illegal exploitation of Azerbaijani natural resources in the Karbagh region, where the Russian peacekeeping unit is located.

Over the past few months, many formal and informal exchanges have taken place through the peacekeepers.

Specifically, on December 22, 2022 at the request of the relevant government structures of Azerbaijan, consultations with peacekeeping forces began on the methods of field visit and monitoring of illegally exploited mineral deposits. The consultations were also attended by representatives of local Armenians.

After the agreement reached through peacekeepers on December 10, 2022, a group of Azerbaijani experts accompanied by peacekeepers tried to visit the mineral deposits of concern in Azerbaijan’s Karbagh region but the group was thwarted by so-called protests; planned in advance.

The Armenian side is carrying out an international campaign of manipulation and disinformation against the Republic of Azerbaijan regarding the issue of the Lachin road of Azerbaijan, and is making false accusations such as imposing a blockade on the people of the Karabakh region of Armenian origin, implementing a policy of ethnic cleansing, and so on.

This smear campaign against Azerbaijan was carried out within the framework of foreign countries and international organizations. I think it is important to explain the situation. In this regard, I decided to write this article taking into account the importance of avoiding unilateral statements that aggravate the situation. It should be noted that, contrary to the claims propagated by Armenia, there is no truth in the existence of such a thing as stopping traffic on the road of the Lachin region and obstructing the ethnic Armenian population of Karabakh.

As can be seen from open sources, the necessary conditions for the unimpeded movement of people and vehicles have been created on the Lachin road. The convoy of the Russian peacekeeping force, which includes convoys of cars carrying humanitarian goods, moves freely in the region. In addition, there were ambulances accompanied by vehicles of the International Committee of the Red Cross operating in the region, as evidenced by video materials published in open sources (communication sites Social ), the peaceful demonstrators do not prevent the movement of the aforementioned vehicles on the road, on the contrary, all conditions are ripe for that.

Another false information published by Armenia is the suspension of natural gas supplies to the ethnic Armenian population. As confirmed by the local Armenians, gas supplies in the region were restored. It should be borne in mind that the occurrence of technical failures in gas pipelines passing through high-mountainous regions due to unfavorable weather conditions is a fairly frequent phenomenon, in the same period, in other mountainous regions of Azerbaijan, for example, in the Balakin and Yardimli districts. Azerbaijani, for this reason there was a disruption in the supply of natural gas.

It should be noted that as a result of the practical response of the Azerbaijani side, the pipeline providing natural gas supplies from Armenia to the Karabakh region passing through the mountainous region was checked and technical problems were eliminated. However, the Armenian side continues to use the case for the purpose of defamation of its campaign.

This entire campaign is disinformation spread by Armenia and aims to divert the attention of the international community from the illegal exploitation of natural resources on the territory of Azerbaijan and the acute environmental problems arising from them, including attempts to use them for illegal activities, and not for purely humanitarian purposes as envisaged by the Lachin road. Azerbaijani. In this case, some media outlets should refrain from making detached and false statements, circulating unfounded accusations against Armenia, and thus harming the fragile post-conflict normalization efforts. Such statements also do not promote dialogue between the Armenian and Azerbaijani authorities, and encourage sectarianism. separatism under the influence of foreign forces.

We expect the international partners to push Armenia to end its illegal activities in the Azerbaijani lands, to recognize Azerbaijan’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and to pursue it in its practical activities, and to push it towards post-conflict normalization.

Written by: Mr. Rafael Bagherov – Chargé d’Affaires of the Embassy of the Republic of Azerbaijan to Algeria