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ICMP Director General: Finding missing persons crucial for peace and stability in region

10 March 2025 11:38 (UTC +04:00)

"Azerbaijan hosted the COP29 conference in Baku last year. This was a very important event. We hope that next time we will discuss the consequences of global warming together. Because this issue also leads to an increase in the number of missing persons," Director General of the International Commission on Missing Persons, Kathryne Bomberger said during the presentation of the "Assessment Report: Accounting for Missing Persons in the Republic of Azerbaijan" by the International Commission on Missing Persons (ICMP), organized by the State Commission for Prisoners of War, Hostages, and Missing Persons, APA reports.

K. Bomberger emphasized that states must accept responsibility for finding missing persons, stating: "Families must know the truth about this issue. These are not easy matters. Azerbaijan has been working in this direction for many years. We see that progress has been made. The creation of the State Commission for Missing Persons in this regard is a great step. The ICMP has always proposed establishment of such a structure. Azerbaijan is working on exhumation. And they are doing this very professionally. I myself witnessed the work in the archaeology and anthropology section here. 11,000 samples have been collected from the families of the 3,700 missing persons. This is a good ratio. Having 3-4 references for each missing person is a positive thing. At the same time, we hope that during our time in Azerbaijan, we will be able to meet with the families of the missing persons."

K. Bomberger also emphasized the importance of giving the families of missing persons an active role. She stated that expanding DATA systems and DNA capabilities is a very important issue for Azerbaijan: "At the same time, cooperation with Armenia regarding missing persons is crucial on the political level. We are helping countries in the region to expand their local capabilities. Our mandate is to achieve cooperation between governments. In this regard, we have created a regional base. This base can play a model role in the future regarding the identification of missing persons between Azerbaijan and Armenia. Because it is through cooperation that all of these issues will be resolved. Finding missing persons is also a crucial issue for peace and stability in the region. I am confident that Azerbaijan and the people in the region are striving for this."