BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 7. Determining the fate of the missing persons is a crucial condition for lasting peace between Azerbaijan and Armenia, Chairman of the Azerbaijani State Commission on Prisoners of War, Hostages and Missing Persons, Ali Naghiyev, said at the 4th international conference on the theme "Strengthening trust and developing effective mechanisms to resolve the issue of missing persons," being held in Baku within the framework of the Baku Dialogue on Missing Persons, Trend's correspondent reports from the event.
“Determining the fate of the missing is our humanitarian responsibility, our moral obligation to their families, and a crucial condition for lasting peace,” he noted.
The official pointed out that the goal of the Baku Dialogue, now held for the fourth time, is to bring together the expertise of states, international organizations, and specialists, and to develop cooperation mechanisms that accelerate search efforts and help families find answers.
"Azerbaijan is one of the countries suffering from the issue of missing persons. In the past, Armenia's unfounded claims and policy of occupation resulted in grave humanitarian consequences for our people. Although the war has ended, the period of waiting continues for families who remain unaware of their loved ones' fates.
The state commission has registered 4,010 persons who went missing as a result of military aggression. Of these, 4,004 went missing during the First Karabakh War, and six during the 44-day Patriotic War of 2020. Among the missing, 3,228 were military personnel and 782 were civilians. The civilians include 71 children, 288 women, and 319 elderly individuals. These figures illustrate the scale of the tragedy," he said.
Naghiyev added that the State Commission, in collaboration with relevant agencies, has expanded efforts regarding the identification of burial sites, excavation and exhumation, and the identification of remains.
"Biological samples have been collected and cataloged from a total of 11,566 donors who are close relatives of the missing persons. This data serves as a crucial foundation for scientifically based identification. As of October 1, 2026, human remains believed to belong to 913 missing persons have been discovered and recovered, and remains presumed to belong to 253 individuals have been exhumed from 32 mass graves found in the liberated territories," he emphasized.
The 4th international conference on the theme "Strengthening trust and developing effective mechanisms to resolve the issue of missing persons", organized by the State Commission on Prisoners of War, Hostages and Missing Persons, is being held in Gulustan Palace within the framework of the Baku Dialogue on Missing Persons.
The event is attended by former heads of state and government, high-ranking representatives of international organizations and foreign countries, heads of agencies dealing with missing persons, experts, representatives of non-governmental organizations, and human rights specialists, as well as ambassadors and military attachés of foreign countries accredited in Azerbaijan and other officials.
One of the main directions of this year's discussions is the formation and strengthening of trust between the parties.
The purpose of the conference is not to be satisfied with discussions, but to contribute to the formation of practical and sustainable mechanisms that strengthen trust and cooperation, serve to ensure families' right to know the truth, facilitate information exchange, and expand the application of modern forensic, DNA and technological capabilities.
