Following the defeat of pro-Armenian forces by Azerbaijan, authorities in Nagorno-Karabakh announced the dissolution of the region. In a decree published on Thursday, the leadership of local authorities ordered the dissolution of “all state institutions and organizations” in the Caucasus region from January 1, 2024. Nagorno-Karabakh will therefore “cease to exist”. More than half of Armenians have already fled the region.
More than 65,000 Armenians expelled Mountain Karabakh have come to Armenia so far, a spokeswoman for Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said on Thursday. To date, nearly 120,000 ethnic Armenians have lived in Nagorno-Karabakh, which is internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan, representing virtually the entire population.
The region has been disputed for decades between the two ex-Soviet republics of Azerbaijan and Armenia. After a war in the early 1990s, the Armenians took control. A separate state declared on the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh was not recognized internationally.
Danger of ethnic cleansing
After a new war in 2020, Azerbaijan retook parts of Nagorno-Karabakh and occupied Azerbaijani territories. Armenia has accused its neighbor of planning “ethnic cleansing” after Azerbaijan launched a large-scale military offensive there last week.
After Azerbaijan’s military offensive began on September 19, Nagorno-Karabakh’s pro-Armenian fighters were forced to accept a ceasefire just a day later.
Russia loses another ally
Russia, as Armenia’s traditional protective power, had allowed the Azerbaijanis to continue their military offensive. Armenian Prime Minister Pashinyan therefore made bitter accusations against Moscow. Russia, in turn, accused Armenia of making a “big mistake” with its recent turn to the West.
Source: Krone
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