United States hailed Azerbaijan’s decision to release Armenian prisoners of war

Joe Biden’s government in the United States on Saturday celebrated Azerbaijan’s decision to hand over fifteen Armenian citizens to Armenia, which he had held as prisoners of war since last year’s armed conflict, in exchange for maps with the location of anti-tank and anti-personnel mines in the region of Agdam, controlled until November by Armenia.

“The United States applauds Azerbaijan’s release of 15 Armenian detainees and their return to their families in Armenia. We also welcome Armenia’s decision to provide Azerbaijan with important information that will facilitate humanitarian demining and prevent future casualties ”, said a statement by Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

He added: “We are grateful to Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili and the essential role Georgia has played in facilitating these measures, which bring the peoples of the region closer to the peaceful and prosperous future they deserve.

“The United States is happy to support these measures and hopes that they will lay the groundwork for future cooperation. We continue to call for the return of all detainees and we stand ready to assist countries in the region in their efforts to continue cooperation and resolve outstanding issues between them, ”Blinken warned in the official note, which ends. by a A new appeal to Armenia and Azerbaijan “to resume substantive negotiations under the auspices of the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group to negotiate a comprehensive political solution to the conflict”.

The handover of the fifteen Armenians on Saturday was carried out with the participation of Georgian officials at the Azerbaijani-Georgian border, the press service of the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry reported in a statement.

“We thank the government of Georgia, headed by Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili, for supporting this humanitarian mission,” said the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry, which also highlighted the contribution of US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken , Deputy Secretary of State for the Office of European and Eurasian Affairs of the State Department, Philip Reeker, the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, and the Swedish representation of the OSCE.

The Azerbaijani side noted that the mine location maps would save the lives of tens of thousands of citizens, including sappers, and speed up Agdam’s recovery and the return of refugees.

Agdam was one of the regions controlled by Armenia after the 1993 war in Nagorno-Karabakh and was taken over by Azerbaijan at the end of 2020, when Yerevan was forced to sign a ceasefire declaration with Baku. under Russian supervision.

After the conflict, Armenia repeatedly called for the return of prisoners of war detained during the armed conflict.

Last May, more than 120 MEPs, including nine Spaniards from five political groups, sent a joint letter to the presidents of the European Council and of the Commission, respectively Charles Michel and Ursula von der Leyen, asking them to intercede for the prisoners Armenian war. still held by Azerbaijan. The letter recalled that after the declaration of a ceasefire, the parties had agreed to return the prisoners of war, which the Armenians did “quickly”.

With information from the EFE

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