The escalation of border tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan leaves more than 200 dead

More than 200 soldiers died this week in border clashes between Armenia and Azerbaijan, according to figures revealed this Friday, September 16, by both countries.

Nikol Pashinyan, the Armenian prime minister, said 135 Armenian staff members were killed, up from a count of 105 earlier this week. For its part, Azerbaijan said 77 of its military had been killed.

Both countries blame each other for the clashes over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region, a border region that is internationally recognized as part of Azeri territory but is populated by Armenians, who have also governed themselves since 1991.

Armenia claims that Azerbaijani forces attacked and seized military positions and civilian infrastructure in settlements inside Armenia, beyond the historically disputed enclave.

Azerbaijan, on the other hand, described what happened as “retaliatory measures” in response to the provocations of Armenia.

Armed conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan

The armed clash between the two countries broke out shortly after midnight from Monday to Tuesday at different points of the common border with the use of weapons of different caliber, including mortars, and drones.

They lasted until Thursday, when both countries agreed to end the clashes, the deadliest between them since a six-week war in 2020 led by Azerbaijan that left more than 6,000 dead, a conflict that preceded the peace agreement reached between the parties and that Russia mediated, although it has proven to be very weak.

The former Soviet countries have been locked in conflict since the 1980s over Nagorno-Karabakh, internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan but, until the 2020 war, populated and controlled by Armenians.

The two countries have never delimited the border by engaging in the Karabakh conflict before the disintegration of the USSR.

Stop the fire

The United States and the UN welcomed last Thursday an announced ceasefire between the two states after several days of escalating violence.

However, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday that the new conflict between the former Soviet countries has been “contained, thanks – and above all – to Moscow’s influence.”

Putin also assured that Russia has “resources” to mediate in the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan, although some experts question this statement, because it is in a war with Ukraine and the cost of opening another military front would be very high. .

Finally, the Kremlin chief said he will press both countries to withdraw their forces to where they were before this week’s conflict broke out.

Armenia expects more from Russia

Russia is a military ally of Armenia. However, it also strives to maintain friendly relations with Azerbaijan.

Armenia asked the Moscow-led Collective Security Treaty Organization to intervene, but has so far sent only one investigative team to the region.

Indeed, the speaker of the Armenian parliament, Alen Simonyan, said he was unhappy with the response of a Russian-led military alliance to Yerevan’s request for help. He also said that Armenia expected more tangible steps from Russia, not just statements.

The international community calls for a diplomatic solution

French President Emmanuel Macron had a telephone conversation with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on Friday.

The Elysee Palace, seat of the French Executive, said that Macron had reaffirmed to the Armenian Prime Minister France’s support for the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Armenia.

For her part, the president of the United States House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, confirmed that she will travel to the Armenian capital this Saturday.

The UN Security Council also addressed the armed confrontation on the border. He called on the parties to return to the negotiating table immediately to move towards signing a lasting peace agreement.

“The international community must remain fully committed to a peaceful solution between Armenia and Azerbaijan and spare no effort to de-escalate the current tensions,” said UN Under-Secretary-General for Central Asian Affairs Miroslav Jenča, vowing to “make the parties return to the negotiating table and help them achieve peace and stability in the region.

The UN representative also reported that the Collective Security Treaty Organization will send a mission to Armenia to assess the situation on the border and inform its member states, after Armenia made a request in this regard.

For Europe, and especially Russia, a new front in the South Caucasus would be the worst moment due to its war in Ukraine. In addition, at this time, the European Union has found a partner supplier of energy resources in Azerbaijan, which in turn has the close support of Turkey.

With EFE, AP and Reuters