Azerbaijan assaults Armenia's Nagorno-Karabakh region
The hostilities, which began on Tuesday, highlighted Azerbaijan's intentions to drive the Armenian army out of the Nagorno-Karabakh region. Armenian separatists in Nagorno-Karabakh declared their surrender and disarmament of the region after the attacks. For its part, Azerbaijan has confirmed the end of the "anti-terrorist operation". Wednesday marks the end of disputes between the Azeris and the separatists.
Russian mediation has played a key role in the negotiations, leading to the withdrawal of the remaining units of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Armenia in the region. Samvel Shakharamanian, the elected leader of Nagorno-Karabakh just ten days ago, said that more than 200 people have been injured and more than 30 killed in the recent Azerbaijani attacks.
Over the past three decades, clashes between Armenia and Azerbaijan have been frequent; as a result, deaths from these conflicts have continued to rise in both nations in 2023. The bombings have mostly taken place in the regional capital, Stepanakert. The Azeri side clarified that the targets of the attacks are "strictly military". On the other side, the authorities claim that the military's intentions are to make incursions "beyond the region".
Baku claims that Yerevan is supporting its army units and equipment in the separatist region, which serves as a justification for its attacks. Armenia denies the allegations and says it has evacuated all its personnel since the end of the 2020 war. Videos were posted on the ministry's X account which, according to the Azeri defence ministry, show its soldiers destroying shelters and weapons "belonging to the large units of the Armenian Armed Forces".
According to Baku, this explosion was triggered by Azerbaijani forces "destroying positions" being used by Armenian separatists in the Nagorno-Karabakh region. The region's army reported shortly afterwards that the amount of fire along the front line of clashes with Azerbaijani forces had "significantly decreased".
According to TASS newspaper in Russia, Hikmet Hajiyev, Azerbaijan's presidential adviser, confirmed that Nagorno-Karabakh separatist leaders had proposed a ceasefire and talks with Baku, but insisted that his nation is close to achieving the main goals of its operation. Expelling Armenian military units from the separatist enclave was something Azerbaijan insisted was necessary to "restore constitutional order".
Hikmet Hajiyev, foreign affairs adviser to President Ilham Aliyev, said Azerbaijan could no longer tolerate having such armed forces on its soil and a structure that constantly endangers the country's security and sovereignty.
International reactions: Europe, France, Russia and Turkey
Although this conflict may seem far from Europe from the European Union's (EU) point of view, it is quite close. Firstly, because both Azerbaijan and Armenia are members of the Council of Europe. In addition, the EU established a civilian mission in Armenia in February 2023 to support stability in the country's border regions. While the EU continues to seek alternatives to Russian gas, several EU nations concluded an agreement with Azerbaijan in April 2023 to send them gas.
The first reactions have not been long in coming, with the French Foreign Ministry issuing a statement calling for "an immediate cessation of hostilities, an end to the offensive and a return to respect for international law".
In addition, according to France24, French President Emmanuel Macron phoned Nikol Pashinian, Prime Minister of Armenia, to inform him that he would convene an emergency session of the UN Security Council to discuss the recent hostilities.
Moscow, which oversaw the end of hostilities after the brutal 2020 conflict and has continued to keep troops stationed in Nagorno-Karabakh under the pretext of "peacekeeping", has rejected Baku's claim that it informed Russia that it intended to carry out the attacks it launched on Tuesday.
However, Maria Zakharova, a Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, insisted that her country's troops stationed there were only informed shortly before Azerbaijan launched its offensive. The Kremlin also called for peace and suggested the sides hold talks after expressing concern over rising tensions.
"We are alarmed by the sudden increase in tension and the outbreak of hostilities. We must first ensure the safety of the civilian population of Karabakh in the context of the military operation being conducted by the Azerbaijani armed forces," according to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Pskov. While this is happening, Armenia calls the incident a "large-scale aggression" and calls on the UN Security Council and Russian peacekeepers to "take clear and unequivocal steps" to stop "Azerbaijan's aggression" against Nagorno-Karabakh.
Azerbaijan's ally Turkey called the concerns that led Baku and Yerevan to resume talks after Azerbaijan launched the special operation "legitimate". The Turkish Foreign Ministry said in a statement that "the process of negotiations between Azerbaijan and Armenia should continue".
Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey's president, has stated on numerous occasions that the Ottoman country and Azerbaijan are "two states, one nation", comments that reflect the historical proximity of the two nations. On the other hand, the massacres of Armenians that took place during World War I in the Ottoman Empire (today's Turkey) have a negative impact on Turkish-Armenian relations.