► What do we know about the fighting in Nagorno-Karabakh in recent days?
Two years after the war between Armenia and the separatists of the province of Nagorno-Karabakh on one side, and Azerbaijan on the other, the ceasefire remains as precarious as ever. The exchanges of fire resumed on August 2 and 3 on the front line which separates the belligerents, despite the presence of 2,000 soldiers from the Russian interposition force. At least three soldiers were killed during these clashes during which the Azeri forces say they have regained ground during the operation called “Vengeance”.
These fights were concentrated around the Lachin corridor, a thin strip of land that connects the separatist province to Armenia. “Extremely Concerned” Russia, which sponsored the November 10, 2020 ceasefire, accused Azerbaijani forces of violating the truce.
► How to explain this sudden surge of violence?
Tension had been rising for weeks on the ground but also in Baku, capital of Azerbaijan. « Lhe Azerbaijani leaders are unhappy with the presence of Armenian armed forces in the area under the control of Russian peacekeepers in Nagorno-Karabakhrecalls the Russian Nurlan Gasimov, a specialist in the Caucasus. President Ilham Aliyev accused Yerevan and indirectly Moscow of violating ceasefire agreements. »
In the background, the battle for control of the Lachin area is being played out, the umbilical cord that connects Armenia to the part of Nagorno-Karabakh still held by the separatists. Based on the ceasefire agreements, Azerbaijan is building a new road which aims to replace the existing corridor in the near future.
The Armenians believe that this project was carried out without consultation and that, in the long term, it will lead to the cessation of the exchange of goods and men between Armenia and the separatist province, condemning it to asphyxiation. “The military operation in recent days is aimed at putting pressure on Yerevan to reach an agreement on Azerbaijani terms”, ajoute Nurlan Gasimov.
► Where are the peace negotiations?
Armenia and Azerbaijan have been quarreling for three decades over control of Nagorno-Karabakh, a mountainous region that seceded from Baku. After a conflict that left 30,000 dead in the early 1990s, the two countries clashed in the fall of 2020. More than 6,500 people were killed in this second war lost by Armenia, at the end of which the Armenians had to cede important territories to Azerbaijan. The arrival of Russian peacekeeping troops did not resolve the many points of contention.
Timid peace talks have been under way for several months under the mediation of the European Union. As a first encouraging step, the Prime Minister of Armenia, Nikol Pashinian, and the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliev, met at length thanks to the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, on April 6 in Brussels. Since then, no concrete announcement has come to materialize these exchanges.