ENVIRONMENTAL TERROR

The Sarsang water reservoir was built by Azerbaijan on the river Tartar in Soviet times, in 1976. Prior to the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict, this body of water was one of the main sources of water in Nagornyy Karabakh.

After the occupation of Nagornyy Karabakh, Sarsang came under the control of Armenian military formations, which blocked the water body in defiance of international conventions, thereby depriving 400,000 residents and farmland in frontline areas of Azerbaijan of water.

In the spring, during the floods, water from Sarsang is drained, leading to the flooding of adjacent lands, while in the hot summer, on the contrary, the shutters are lowered, blocking the flow of water into Azerbaijani villages.

Moreover, for almost 20 years now this body of water has been a hotbed of environmental disaster. As acknowledged by the Armenian media, being unattended, the Sarsang reservoir has reached an emergency state and poses a threat to human life and the environment.

To study the state of the reservoir and the threat posed by Sarsang, the PACE Committee on Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development last year appointed a monitoring mission led by Milica Markovic.

At the end of last month, a delegation under her leadership visited Azerbaijan, held talks with government bodies and got acquainted with the situation in the border areas. This was the second visit by a European mission to Azerbaijan. European MPs could not, however, visit the water reservoir proper, as Armenia did not allow the delegation to the occupied territories.

The head of the PACE mission, Milica Markovic, talks about her vision of the problem and ways of solving it in an interview with R+.

- What has been the objective of your visit?

- This is my second visit to Azerbaijan. We have come here to prepare a report on the issue. It will be a report of the PACE Committee on Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development, and I have to finish the project in the coming months. It will reflect issues of a shortage of water for the Azerbaijani population and the cutting off of water from Armenia.

- When will the report be ready?

- Back in 2013, I visited Azerbaijan as part of the parliamentary delegation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Then we met with President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and also discussed this issue. This is a very sensitive issue for Azerbaijan. Water shortage is one of the biggest problems in the regions of Azerbaijan that are located on the line of contact with Armenia. In meetings with representatives of the Azerbaijani government, I noticed that Azerbaijan is trying to resolve this problem by investing a lot in these areas, and I hope that it will be eliminated with our help. The essence of our report is that the problem of water shortage must be addressed. People cannot live without food and water. This is what I said at a meeting at the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry.

- If I am not mistaken, you have repeatedly asked Armenia for permission to monitor the Sarsang reservoir, but Yerevan refused. In your opinion, what is the reason for refusal?

- I would like to note again that our project covers both countries, i.e. their front-line zones. As I said, this is my second visit to Azerbaijan and I have never been to Armenia. Yet, I am still optimistic as the Armenian government has not said 'no'. They haven't said "yes" either, but we are still waiting for their response. I hope we can visit the Armenian side, because it is important to carry out monitoring on both sides to prepare the report,.

Let me remind you that on 30 July this year, the Council of Europe sent an official letter to the government of Armenia and the Armenian delegation to PACE to organize a visit there. But there is no answer. I myself have repeatedly met with the Armenian delegation on this issue, but there is no information about the organization of our visit and its dates.

- What will be your next steps if Armenia refuses again?

- If the Armenian authorities do not organize my visit there, I will have to either complete the report ahead of time or ask the committee to move the dates. This can last up to April 2016. I want to say that I am acting on the decision of the Committee and we will update our next steps at the session at the end of September - early October.

- What districts of Azerbaijan did you visit on your last trip and what issues relating to the report did you notice? What are your conclusions?

- As in December last year, this year I also visited six districts - Tartar, Agdam, Barda, Goranboy, Naftalan, Yevlax and Agcabadi. These districts are adjacent to the line of contact and are experiencing a shortage of water. We met with the executive authorities of each district and talked about the issue. The point is that along with the problem of drinking water, there is also a lack of water for irrigation, which hampers the development of agriculture.

- Of course, you investigated the matter. Have you seen cases where one of the parties refused to provide the conditions for a research mission? If you have, what were the consequences?

- I am not pleased with this conduct of the Armenian side and I take it with pessimism. However, I am concerned about the future, and I hope that our visit to the Armenian side will take place.

- What would you like to add in the end?

- In conclusion, I would like to note that I held a lot of meetings in Azerbaijan and received a lot of information which will be reflected in my report. I sympathize with the people of the six districts who are facing water shortages and I hope that our report will help eliminate this problem.