Fate of missing persons remains central focus for Azerbaijani diplomacy

Azerbaijan's Ambassador to the Netherlands, Rahman Mustafayev, met with the Chair and members of the Board of Directors of the International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP) and the organization's Secretary General in The Hague, Report informs, referring to the embassy.

During the meeting, the Azerbaijani diplomat briefed his interlocutors on the situation in the region, the progress of negotiations between Baku and Yerevan, the revitalization of cities and villages in Azerbaijan’s Karabakh region liberated from Armenian occupation, and the ongoing demining efforts in the liberated territories.

The ambassador emphasized the measures taken by the Azerbaijani Presidential Administration, ministries, and agencies to clarify the fate of nearly 4,000 missing Azerbaijani citizens. He also highlighted the efforts of Azerbaijani diplomacy in international organizations to draw global attention to this problem.

The parties exchanged views on the content of the assessment report prepared by the ICMP delegation following their visit to Azerbaijan in June last year. They discussed future steps to strengthen cooperation between the commission and Azerbaijan in resolving the issue of missing Azerbaijani citizens during the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict.

Ambassador Mustafayev stressed the importance of this issue for the entire Azerbaijani society, especially for the relatives of the missing persons. He particularly underlined that without resolving this problem, it is impossible to establish trustful relations between Baku and Yerevan and achieve lasting peace in the region.

The commission's leadership expressed their interest in intensifying cooperation with Azerbaijan on this issue, both bilaterally and multilaterally. They affirmed their readiness to provide comprehensive scientific, technical, and other assistance in locating and identifying missing Azerbaijani citizens.

The ICMP was established in 1996 at the initiative of U.S. President Bill Clinton. The Commission's initial mandate was to find about 40,000 people who went missing as a result of military operations between 1991 and 1995. Today, the Commission operates in more than 40 countries worldwide and is the main intergovernmental organization dealing with the problems of missing persons.

Azerbaijan's cooperation with the Commission has been carried out since 2022 through the Presidential Administration, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and other ministries and agencies to clarify the fate of nearly 4,000 citizens who went missing during the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict.