The detained Armenians were handed over to Armenia on the Azerbaijani-Georgian border with the participation of Georgian representatives
BAKU, June 12. /TASS/. Baku has handed 15 Armenian military personnel detained in the country to Yerevan in exchange for a map of minefields in the Aghdam region, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry said in a press release on Saturday.
"According to the agreement reached, on , in exchange for providing Azerbaijan with maps of 97,000 anti-tank and anti-personnel mines in the Aghdam region, 15 detained Armenians were handed over to Armenia on the Azerbaijani-Georgian border with the participation of Georgian representatives," the press release says.
Baku appreciates the support of international mediators in the exchange, including the Georgian government headed by Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili. It also notes "the mediating role, first of all, of the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Acting Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Philip Reeker, President of the European Council Charles Michel and the Swedish Chairmanship of the OSCE for their contribution to the process."
Armenia’s Acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has confirmed the return of 15 Armenian military personnel, who were captured in Azerbaijan during hostilities in Nagorno-Karabakh in the autumn of 2020, he said in Armenia’s Gegharkunik region on Saturday.
"I have good news. Fifteen of our captured brothers are returning home. They are on their way now. When they are in Armenia, I will make a more detailed statement," he noted.
After the end of fighting in Nagorno-Karabakh last autumn, Baku regained control of seven areas adjacent to Karabakh, including the Aghdam region, in accordance with the November 10 trilateral agreement.
Demining of the areas affected by the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict remains a major post-war issue for Baku and Yerevan. Azerbaijan has repeatedly reported cases of military and civilian casualties caused by mines. According to official statistics, since the trilateral statement was signed, more than 120 Azerbaijanis have been killed or injured in such incidents.
https://tass.com/world/1302181
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