By: Risha Chaurasia
Armenia is a nation in the mountainous Caucasus region between Asia and Europe. Although it is mostly a peaceful nation, it does share a conflict with its neighbor Azerbaijan. The conflict is in the Nagorno-Karabakh region, which is a disputed territory. It is a mountainous, landlocked region recognized internationally as Azerbaijan’s territory but mostly has an Armenian population that resists Azerbaijani rule. In 1991 the region declared independence and since then it has ruled itself – with Armenian support – as the unrecognized Republic of Artsakh. Since then both nations fight over the significance and strength of this rule. However, in the past decade, this issue had been claimed to be solved and frozen over. However, quite recently it has again flared up and made headlines.
Starting Sunday, violent military actions have taken place and Nagorno-Karabakh forces along with the Armenian military have been fighting Azerbaijani troops. At least 100 people have lost their lives been killed including civilians, and hundreds more are said to be injured. Azerbaijan has claimed to have occupied Nagorno-Karabakh territory, a claim the Armenian deny.
This issue dates back to before the creation of the Soviet Union. They suppress when both nations became Soviet states but remerged after the Cold War and the hold of the Communist bloc dissolved.
The tensions also erupted in a war in 1944 but ended in a ceasefire. As a result of the war, Armenia gained full control of Nagorno-Karabakh and other surrounding enclaves of Azerbaijan’s territory.
This conflict is somewhere also based on religious terms. Azerbaijan has a Muslim majority and Armenia Christian.
The situation took a positive turn in 2018, with the swearing-in of new Armenian leadership. Things started looking up for both nations. However, these hopes crashed and hostility returned. According to Azerbaijani leaders, this was caused due to the provocative and firm line taken by the Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. Azerbaijan says it is responding to Armenian aggression in areas that are legally its territory and which have been occupied by enemy troops and separatists for decades.
This issue has great humanitarian importance, thousands of civilians are losing their life. It also has great international importance. Regional powers including Russia, Turkey, and Iran are highly invested in the South Caucasus. Turkey is strictly on Azerbaijan’s side and provides its staunch support. Russia is traditionally closer to Armenia, however, its ties with Azerbaijani elites have grown significantly over the years.
Both countries have been jostling for influence in different theatres all around the world including in Syria and Libya. Armenia claims that Turkey is sending Syrian fighters into the area to fight on Azerbaijan’s side, a claim Azerbaijan calls “complete nonsense”.
The wider South Caucasus is a crucial artery for gas and oil into Turkey and on to Europe and other world markets. Azerbaijan supplies about 5% of Europe’s gas and oil demands, and fighting in 2016 came close to a number of these pipelines.
These conflicts are the reason for the current dispute. Both nations are taking military actions and igniting the dispute once again. If the fighting is left to fester and grown it may turn into a much larger regional conflict.
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