Baku, October 23, AZERTAC  “As a result of spontaneous exploitation in the territories occupied by the country-aggressor Armenia, the region's natural resources, environment and biodiversity have been severely damaged. Our forests rich in valuable species of trees and shrubs have been purposefully destroyed,” said Deputy Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources Vugar Karimov.He noted that before the occupation, there were more than 2,000 of noble plant species in existing in favorable landscape constituting 42% of Azerbaijan’s flora. “About 50 fauna and more than 70 species of flora of the region are listed in the worlds’ Red List and Azerbaijan’s Red Book. Unfortunately, we do not have accurate information about the current state of these species.”“20 of the plant species found in the area are endemic plants existing only in Azerbaijan. These endemic species of 7 plants (Tulipa karabachensis, Centaurea karabaghensis, Astragalus zangelanus, Alcea sachsachanica, Carpinus schuschaensis, Onobrichis schuschaensis and Astragalus schuschensis) can be found only in the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh.The deputy minister noted that in the period before occupation Basitchay, Garagol, Arazboyu, Lachin, Gubadli and Dashalti state nature reserves - protected areas of charming Karabakh were the sites of conservation of such rare plant species Ophrys caucasica, the symbol of Karabakh in the pre-occupation period, Platanus oriental, Castanea sativa, Carpinus schuschaensis, Zelkova carpinifolia, Taxus baccata and others.At the same time, Vugar Karimov pointed that 25 percent of the country's forested areas are located in the occupied territories. According existing reports, most of the valuable forests were destroyed as a result of Armenian vandalism."Large-scale monitoring will be carried out in the liberated areas together with the relevant agencies. Comprehensive assessment of the damage to natural resources, landscape and forests, flora and fauna of the region will be carried out,” he added.