Azerbaijan, NATO agree to demine Soviet-era shooting range

English.news.cn   2012-03-18 05:37:28

BAKU, March 17 (Xinhua) -- Azerbaijan and NATO have signed an agreement to demine the largest military training facility of the former Soviet army in South Caucasus, Azerbaijan's media reported on Saturday.

The Azerbaijan-NATO agreement on the Jeyranchol project was signed by the Azerbaijan National Agency for Mine Action (ANAMA) and NATO Maintenance and Supply Agency (NAMSA).

The former Soviet army's biggest shooting range in South Caucasus was based on the Azerbaijan-Georgia border in Jeyranchol.

Under the agreement, NAMSA will finance 50 percent of the project, while the other half will be financed by the Azerbaijani government.

The Jeyranchol project includes the clearing of mines and unexploded ordnance scattered in an area of 64 million square meters on the Azerbaijan-Georgia border.

The preparations for the project will start on March 26. About 45 employees and 1 mine-clearing vehicle will be involved in the operations.

ANAMA is the national entity responsible for the coordination of mine action activities in Azerbaijan. The agency owns all the necessary resources for humanitarian mine-clearing operations.

Editor: Mu Xuequan http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/world/2012-03/18/c_122847583.htm