Irish historian: Armenia can be held responsible for not delivering maps of mined areas

"Armenians are obliged to hand over to Azerbaijan maps of the mined areas that killed innocent civilians in the liberated Azerbaijani lands," Irish historian Dr. Patrick Walsh told Report's US Bureau.

According to him, such incidents impede the establishment of peace and normalization of relations in the region: "Thereby, it contributes to prolonging the war. Protocol II on Prohibitions or Restrictions on the Use of Mines, Booby-Traps, and Other Devices, adopted in 1980, requires the precise marking of minefields and taking measures to clear mines after the end of hostilities. The documents state that the use of weapons against civilians and the intentional cause of death is prohibited under any circumstances."

Walsh said he regretted that the requirements of the documents were not taken into account: "No sanctions were imposed on those who ignored and violated the protocol. A recent international conference on the issue also stressed the need to bring to justice those who used mines in wartime to remove them from areas where mines were planted after the war. So far, no mechanism is underway to fulfill the conditions set out in these documents. In this case, several legal sanctions may be imposed to bring Armenia to justice."

The Irish historian also stressed that Armenia's action aimed at terrorizing the Azerbaijani people: "It would be better if Armenians take steps to restore peace and normalize relations in the region. But I'm not sure they will."