Azerbaijanis continue peaceful protests on Lachin road

SHUSHA, Azerbaijan, December 17. Representatives of Azerbaijani non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have been protesting peacefully near Shusha, close to the Russian peacekeepers' temporary deployment area, for the sixth day, Trend reports from the scene on December 17. The rally participants demand the arrival of Russian peacekeepers' Command Andrei Volkov in the area, the establishment of conditions to monitor the illicit exploitation of the country's mineral resources, and the cessation of Armenia's environmental terrorism on Azerbaijani lands. The protesters also require the border and customs post set-up in the Lachin direction of the border with Armenia, as well as the interdiction of arms smuggling into Azerbaijan. Previously, following the talks with the Russian peacekeepers' command on December 3 and 7, 2022, a group of experts from the Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources, the State Property Service under the Ministry of Economy, and AzerGold CJSC were going to begin preliminary monitoring of the illicit mineral resource exploitation, as well as emerging environmental implications on Azerbaijani lands, where the Russian peacekeepers are temporarily deployed, on December 10, 2022. The expert team was expected to inspect the environmental condition at the 'Gizilbulagh' gold deposit and the 'Damirli' copper-molybdenum deposit, monitor various areas, organize cadastral property records, assess potential risks and threats to the environment, as well as to underground and surface water sources. However, when arriving in the monitoring area, the expert group, accompanied by Russian peacekeepers, faced provocations. The planned initial inspection and monitoring did not take place due to the fact that the Russian peacekeepers not only did not create necessary conditions and prevented for the entire process to carry on.