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Azerbaijan: Humanitarian Demining Helps Communities Recover (dipnote)

Azerbaijan, located in the heart of the South Caucasus and along the coast of
the Caspian Sea, has long understood the dangers of landmines and unexploded
ordnance. As many as 1,400 Azerbaijanis have been killed or injured by
landmines, buried artillery shells, and mortars since the end of Azerbaijan's
1988-1994 conflict with neighboring Armenia. In addition, this former Soviet
republic was home to several military training sites where tons of munitions
left over from past exercises and testing were left behind in the years
leading up to independence. As a result, humanitarian demining is now one of
the government's top priorities -- and an area where the United States is
stepping up to lend a helping hand.

I recently met Kathryn Boynton, the Program Manager for the South Caucasus
from our Bureau's Office of Weapons and Abatement (PM/WRA), who explained how
our conventional weapons destruction programs are making a positive difference
in communities across Azerbaijan -- and dozens of other countries around the
world struggling to recover from conflict.

Since 2000, the United States has provided more than $20 million in training
and support for the Azerbaijan Agency for National Mine Action (ANAMA), a
nongovernmental organization that ...

dipnote