Caucaz

The fall of the Nagorno-Karabakh government after 30 years could empower Turkey and weaken Iran.

The convoys snaked for miles along mountain passes as the mass exodus of Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh, a majority Armenian enclave that is formally part of Azerbaijan, continued to unfold. Western leaders wrung their hands but did nothing to stop it. With the few belongings they could retrieve — mattresses, refrigerators, pots and pans — piled precariously on their battered Soviet-era cars, over 100,000 people, almost triple the population of Lichtenstein, fled the contested region where Armenians dwelled for millennia until Azerbaijan first starved them under a nine-month-long blockade then attacked them on Sept. 19 in what it called an “anti-terror operation.”

By launching a military offensive in Nagorny Karabakh, President Aliyev forfeited the trust of Europeans. Azerbaijan’s status as a transport hub cannot be a reason for the EU to go soft on Baku.

The events of the last week are triggering a debate on the need for a deep reset of Europe’s policy toward Azerbaijan.

By launching a military offensive in Nagorny Karabakh, President Aliyev forfeited the trust of Europeans. Azerbaijan’s status as a transport hub cannot be a reason for the EU to go soft on Baku.

The events of the last week are triggering a debate on the need for a deep reset of Europe’s policy toward Azerbaijan.

After besieging and starving 120,000 Armenians of the South Caucasus Republic of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) since December 2022, Azerbaijan launched a large-scale military offensive against Artsakh on September 19, subjecting the capital Stepanakert and other cities and villages to intensive fire using heavy artillery and drones.

Here’s the full text of the written interview that I gave to Dutch journalist Laura Oorschot, who incorporated some of the insight during her appearance on blckbx’s livestream on this subject on 22 September.

1. How would you describe Pashinyan’s political position at present?

Pashinyan is in a very difficult position after this week’s events since many among the population consider him a traitor to their national cause, which they regard as extending into Azerbaijan’s Karabakh Region. He came to power in what can be described as a Color Revolution that he fueled through a combination of nationalist and liberal rhetoric. The 2020 conflict and the latest one discredited his nationalist credentials, while his orders to break up protests after both discredit his liberal ones.

A fresh disaster may be looming in Nagorny Karabakh, the majority-Armenian highland enclave within the borders of Azerbaijan.

On September 19, a lightning Azerbaijani offensive overwhelmed inferior Armenian forces, and Azerbaijan took possession of the province it had not controlled in thirty-five years. Locals reported at least 200 casualties, and there were credible reports of civilian deaths.

Le conflit chronique entre Arméniens et Azerbaïdjanais resurgit après une période d’accalmie, ou de guerre de basse intensité. Pour le contrôle du Haut-Karabakh. La guerre la plus stupide du monde, disait à l’époque un diplomate d’une autre ancienne république soviétique, bien plus grande. Parce que la région contestée est absolument dépourvue de ressources naturelles d’importance. Et de toute importance stratégique. De plus, le conflit qui dure depuis trente ans l’a presque dépeuplée. Bref, un désert. Mais un désert pour lequel des gens continuent de se battre et de mourir.