China to continue supporting Azerbaijan in humanitarian mine clearance, official says

China will continue to support Azerbaijan in the field of humanitarian mine clearance, Report informs, citing statements by Counselor of the Department of Arms Control of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China Shen Jian at the 4th International Mine Action Conference in Baku.

According to him, last year the governments of China and Azerbaijan signed a memorandum of understanding on strengthening bilateral humanitarian cooperation.

"In accordance with this memorandum, China provided Azerbaijan with financial assistance in the amount of 2 million yuan. This year, China will continue to support Azerbaijan in accordance with the provisions of the memorandum," Shen Jian noted.

He highlighted that starting from the end of the last century, China conducted three phases of mine clearance campaigns, which eliminated the threat of landmines that had persisted for decades.

"Through concrete actions, China has provided assistance in mine clearance to more than 40 countries, trained over 1,000 mine action specialists, and facilitated the return of more than 200,000 square meters of land to productive use," the counselor said.

According to him, China intends to accelerate the clearance of contaminated areas, provide medical and rehabilitation assistance to landmine victims, promote the safe and dignified return of displaced people to their homelands, strengthen cooperation with the UN and UNDP, and actively develop South–South and trilateral cooperation.