What was missing from 2020: war breaks out between Armenia and Azerbaijan | The NY Journal
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The possibility of a new war between nations has the world in suspense.
The hitherto latent conflict of Nagorno Karabakh, the oldest in the post-Soviet space, escalated this weekend with violent clashes in the separatist territory disputed by Armenia and Azerbaijan that threaten a new large-scale war in the South Caucasus.
“We are on the verge of a full-scale war in the South Caucasus, which can have unpredictable consequences. War can go beyond the borders of the region and spread“Said the Armenian Prime Minister, Nikol Pashinian, in a televised message to the nation.
Nikol Pashinyan President Armenia: “Not an inch of land to our enemy. I came here to declare that I am ready to die for our Homeland.” pic.twitter.com/U7LomhuIPE
– High Empiricist (@HighEmpiricist) September 27, 2020
Armenia and Azerbaijan have been in a state of war since 1991, although three years later they signed a ceasefire, in force until today although with reported violations both sides.
In his speech of just over seven minutes, Pashinián stated “since this morning Nagorno Karabakh is the victim of an attack by the Azerbaijani Army. The bombings affect the civilian population and the capital (of Nagorno Karabakh), Stepanakert ”.
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The government of Baku (the capital of Azerbaijan) claims to have launched a “counteroffensive” after having registered large-scale attacks by the Armenian army against their positions and civil settlements located on the front line of the conflict zone.
Seeing so many of my friends in uniform heading out to protect their homeland / Armenia, because of Azerbaijan’s coordinated assault on Artsakh. I even saw a friend who recently moved from Lebanon. Power to them ❤️ #ArtsakhStrong pic.twitter.com/6B75YkTJzk
– Verginiee (@Verginiee) September 27, 2020
The Armenian leader assured that the country is prepared to respond to the Azerbaijani attack by being the “guarantor of security” of Nagorno Karabakh.
Pashinyan insisted that Armenia, with all the means and resources at its disposal, is ready to “keep its back” to Nagorno Karabakh.
Azerbaijan wants to regain territory
While Pashinyan addressed the nation, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliev intervened before the Security Council of the Caucasian country, where he promised not to give in one iota in the long-running conflict with Armenia.
“We are in our land, we do not want other people’s. But we will not give ours to anyone, “Aliyev told the country’s military leadership.
The Azerbaijani leader insisted that the Nagorno Karabakh conflict cannot have a “half-baked” solution.
“We will never allow the creation of the so-called ‘Second Armenian state’ in Azerbaijani territory. Today’s events are proof of this, ”he affirmed while calling for the restoration of“ historical justice ”and the“ territorial integrity of the country ”in such a way that the Azerbaijani people are satisfied.
War bells
The escalation in Nagorno Karabakh led Armenia to decree martial law and general mobilization throughout its territory, an exceptional measure, which had not occurred during other periods of increased tension between the two countries, such as the so-called “war of the four days ”of April 2016.
Pashinian explained that this decision was approved because Azerbaijan can begin “military actions in the direction of the Armenian border and resort to provocations to destabilize the situation in the region.”
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A few hours later, the President of Azerbaijan He also signed a decree on the declaration of martial law throughout the country as of tomorrow, September 28.
The document also provides for the imposition of a night curfew in several cities, including the capital, which will take effect from 9:00 p.m. and until 6:00 a.m.
Casualties in both territories
According to Baku, in the clashes in the conflict zone they have deceased five Azerbaijani citizens. The number of those injured by the Armenian attacks, according to the country’s Public Prosecutor’s Office, amounts to 19 people among the civilian population.
Armenia in turn reported 16 soldiers killed and more than a hundred woundeds because of the bombing of the Azerbaijani forces.
According to the Nagorno Karabakh ombudsman, there are also fatalities among the civilian population in the area, including at least one woman and one girl.
The situation led the authorities of the separatist enclave to begin evacuating the population from various locations near the line of fire.
Turkey supports Azerbaijan
The President of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and the Foreign Ministry of that country promised this Sunday “full support” to Baku in its confrontation with Yerevan for control of Nagorno Karabakh, a statement that was strongly condemned by Armenia.
“The Turkish nation is today, as it has always been, with all its possibilities by the side of its brother AzerbaijanErdogan wrote on Twitter.
One nation, two states .. We are stand with #Azerbaijan until the end! pic.twitter.com/oYJ6GmlxW0
– Orhan Alkan (@orhanalkann) September 27, 2020
The Armenian Prime Minister stated in this regard that the “aggressive” stance of Ankara threatens “catastrophic” consequences for the entire South Caucasus and neighboring regions.
Pashinian called on the international community to exert its influence on Turkey to dissuade it from interfering in the conflict in Nagorno Karabakh, which will “definitely destabilize” the situation, he said.
A world in suspense
Russia, one of the mediators for the settlement of the long-standing conflict within the framework of the Minsk Group of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), on Sunday urged the immediate cessation of hostilities in Nagorno Karabakh.
The respective appeal was made both in a telephone conversation between the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, with Pashinián, as by the Russian Foreign Ministry, Sergei Lavrov, with his two counterparts from Azerbaijan and Armenia.
“The situation in the Nagorno Karabakh area has deteriorated considerably. We urge the parties to cease fire and begin negotiations in order to stabilize the situation, ”the Russian Foreign Ministry said, as did the Minsk Group.
The escalation of tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan also caused great concern among other members of the international community, many of whom issued statements calling on the parties for peace.
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Thus, the European Union (EU) He urged the parties to the conflict to return to “negotiations without preconditions” and to abandon all military hostility.
Some countries in the region, such as Georgia and IranThey also offered their mediation to the conflict parties to achieve peace in the region.
The explanation of the conflict
The Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict dates back to the times of the Soviet Union, when in the late 1980s and early 1990s the territory Azerbaijani from Nagorno Karabakh, populated mainly by Armenians, it requested its incorporation to neighboring Armenia, after which a war broke out that caused some 25,000 deaths.
At the end of the fighting, the Armenian forces seized control of the Karabakh and they also occupied vast Azerbaijani territories, which they call “security strip”, to unite it with Armenia.
Azerbaijan maintains that the solution to the conflict with Armenia necessarily involves the liberation of the occupied territories, a demand that has been supported by several resolutions of the UN Security Council.
Armenia, for its part, supports the right to self-determination of Nagorno Karabakh and advocates the participation of the representatives of the separatist territory in the negotiations on the settlement of the conflict
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