Azernews.Az

BAKU – A NATO-supported project aiming to remove Soviet-era unexploded ordnances in Azerbaijan was formally closed in a ceremony held in the capital Baku on Friday.

Unexploded ordnances (UXOs) scattered around a vast area in the western Agstafa region when Russian troops blew up the ammunition storehouse in the district’s Saloglu village during their pullout from Azerbaijan after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. 37 people have been killed and 80 others injured in mine explosions in the area.

Nazim Ismayilov, head of ANAMA, the Azerbaijani agency engaged in clearing mines, said about 600,000 mines and UXOs have been rendered harmless and over 5.6 million square meters of territory demined under the project.

Deputy Prime Minister Abid Sharifov told the ceremony that the Azerbaijani government had asked NATO and Turkey’s representation in the alliance to support the over five-year-long project.

"Turkey has been the biggest contributor to the project," he said. "Overall, 14 countries have provided financial assistance for it, including the United States, Switzerland, Austria, Iceland and Norway. The project took 67 months."

According to Sharifov, the project cost over 3.45 million euros, with 36 percent of the amount provided by the government of Azerbaijan.

The deputy prime minister said that under the project, 50,000 UXOs were found and rendered harmless in an area outside the Saloglu village as well.

NATO Assistant Secretary General Gabor Iklody said the project has been successfully implemented under Turkey’s leadership. He also termed the Saloglu project as an example of NATO’s successful cooperation with Azerbaijan.