One of our main concerns today is that the Armenian government continues the settlement of Syrian refugees of Armenian origin in the Azerbaijani territories kept under occupation running contrary to all international norms and principles. Donations collected during the conference should be spent for meeting important humanitarian needs of the Syrian refugees and restoring their living conditions, but not for illegal settlements.

Deputy Prime Minister, Chairman of the State Committee on Refugees and IDPs Ali Hasanov, Chairman of the Republican Commission on International Humanitarian Assistance Ali Hasanov addressed the third International Humanitarian Pledging Conference for Syria in Kuwait City on March 31, the State Committee told.

Hasanov expressed gratitude to the State of Kuwait and UN Secretary General for the invitation to the event and organization, noting that the Syrian conflict caused one of the most serious humanitarian crisis in the world.

The conflict resulted in millions of people, including refugees and internally displaced persons suffering from severe conditions and their human rights are being violated. Also, neighboring countries that provided shelter for the refugees in their territories are now affected by consequences of the conflict. According to A. Hasanov, having experienced similar problems, Azerbaijan well understands the pain and suffering of the Syrian people. For over two decades, 20 percent of Azerbaijani territories have remained under occupation as a result of an ethnic cleansing policy carried out by Armenia, and more than a million people continue to live as refugees and IDPs in the country,” the Deputy PM underlined.

The state committee chairman mentioned that Azerbaijan now acts as a new donor country on an international scale. And despite economic difficulties going on around the world, Azerbaijan International Development Agency (AIDA) continues to implement development and humanitarian projects in more than 30 countries of Latin America, Africa and Asia, and the Heydar Aliyev Foundation in Pakistan, Georgia, the Netherlands, Egypt, Romania, Russia, France, Italy, Vatican, Bosnia and Herzegovina and other countries.

“Continuing this noble mission, we are working to determine the humanitarian aid to be sent for the purpose of bettering the lives of the Syrian refugees here in Azerbaijan, a peace-seeking country supporting Syria’s territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence,” Ali Hasanov stressed.