Azernews.Az

By Sara Rajabova

All conditions have been created for international humanitarian organizations' work in Azerbaijan and one of their main goals is to address the problems of refugees and IDPs, Azerbaijani Deputy Prime Minister, Ali Hasanov said.

Hasanov, who is also the Chairman of the State Committee for Deals of Refugees and IDPs made remarks during a meeting with the newly-appointed Head of the Representative Office of the International Norwegian Humanitarian Organization Neil Williams on July 3.

Hasanov called for implementation of projects aimed at improving employment, educational and health problems of the refugees and internally displaced persons.

Norwegian Humanitarian Enterprise (NHE) began its work among the refugees in Azerbaijan in January 1994, particularly in the Samukh region outside Ganja. NHE's staff includes five Norwegians, and its major source of funding comes from private donors in Norway.

Hasanov noted that Azerbaijani government is absolutely committed to solving the problems of refugees and IDPs.

He said therefore, the works of international humanitarian organizations in the country have a political importance that allows educating national personnel in this field and informing the world community about the lengthy delay in the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict resolution.

Williams, in turn, said he would strive to successfully implement the projects to address the problems of refugees and IDPs and certain problems of the people with low-income.

He noted that several training courses and conferences have been arranged for this purpose. Williams also said studies are underway to hold the courses and conferences in the regions inhabited by the refugees and internally displaced persons to assess their needs and also for realization of a new project.

The bloody war, which flared up in the late 1980s due to Armenia's territorial claims against its South Caucasus neighbor, left without homes about 700,000 civilians of Nagorno-Karabakh and the regions adjoining it, as well as the regions bordering with Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh.

They are temporarily settled in more than 1,600 settlements across 62 cities and regions of Azerbaijan.

Moreover, 250,000 Azerbaijanis were expelled from Armenia and became refugees due to Armenia's ethnic cleansing policy after the emergence of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict with Azerbaijan.

The Azerbaijanis who had displaced from their homes were forced to live in refugee camps, tents and wagons in very difficult conditions.

The UN Security Council has passed four resolutions on Armenian withdrawal from the Azerbaijani territory, but they have not been enforced to this day.