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Fierce fighting between Armenian and Azerbaijani armed forces continues in the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region, with each side gaining the upper hand.
The mountain area is internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan, but is operated by ethnic Armenians.
The separatist authorities there said 31 of their soldiers had since died and some lost positions had been recaptured.
Azerbaijan said its armed forces inflicted “heavy losses” and the Armenian shelling injured 26 civilians.
Both Armenia and Azerbaijan have already declared general mobilization and martial law in some areas.
- What are Armenia and Azerbaijan arguing about?
The fighting is the worst in the longstanding conflict since 2016, when at least 200 people were killed in clashes.
It has sparked international calls for diplomacy, fearful that regional powers could be drawn into the conflict in the strategically important Caucasus region.
Turkey has already declared its support for Azerbaijan, while Russia – which has military bases in Armenia – has called for an immediate ceasefire.
Armenia accuses Turkey of providing direct military support to Azerbaijan, a claim that Azerbaijan denies.
The territorial dispute over Nagorno-Karabakh is one of the oldest conflicts in the world.
When Nagorno-Karabakh broke away from Azerbaijan in the early 1990s, tens of thousands died in fighting and many ethnic Azerbaijanis had to flee their homes.
It is now a de facto independent region that is heavily reliant on Armenia’s support. But it is not recognized by any UN member, including Armenia.
Nagorno-Karabakh – key factors
- A mountain region of approx. 4,400 km²
- Traditionally inhabited by Christian Armenians and Muslim Turks
- In the Soviet era it became an autonomous region within the Republic of Azerbaijan
- Internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan, but the majority of the population is ethnically Armenian
- An estimated one million people were displaced and around 30,000 killed in the 1990s war
- Separatist forces captured additional territory around the enclave in Azerbaijan in the war of the 1990s
- Since a truce in 1994, the stalemate has largely prevailed
- Turkey openly supports Azerbaijan
- Russia has military bases in Armenia
What’s the latest from the battlefield?
On Monday, Nagorno-Karabakh authorities said another 15 of their soldiers had been killed. They reported 16 deaths in the military on Sunday.
More than 100 people were injured.
Image rightsEPAImage descriptionArmenia released photos of allegedly destroyed Azerbaijani tanks
The self-proclaimed republic said its armed forces had destroyed four Azerbaijani helicopters, 36 tanks and armored personnel carriers, according to the Armenpress news agency.
It also said that it killed many Azerbaijani troops.
Armenian Defense Ministry spokeswoman Shushan Stepanyan said that “fighting is raging of various levels,” adding that “Defense Army units” are “counteracting” several areas.
Image rightsEPAImage descriptionAzerbaijan released pictures of allegedly damaged Armenian armored vehicles
The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said the country’s armed forces are continuing the “counterattack” and moving from “advantageous positions liberated by the Armenian armed forces”.
It was said that “the enemy suffered heavy losses”.
Azerbaijan previously confirmed the loss of a helicopter but said the crew survived and reported that 12 Armenian air defense systems had been destroyed. It faced other losses.
Azerbaijan said Monday that 26 civilians were injured in the Armenian shelling and accused Armenia of targeting densely populated areas.
Azerbaijan said five members of the same family were killed in shelling by Armenians on Sunday.
The accident claims made by Armenia and Azerbaijan have not been independently verified.
At least 16 people died in border collisions in July. This led to the largest demonstration in years in the Azerbaijani capital, Baku, calling for the region to be retaken.
The international response
- UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said he was “extremely concerned” and urged both sides to stop the fight
- Russia’s foreign minister held urgent talks with both the Armenian and Azerbaijani leaders
- France, which has a large Armenian community, has called for an immediate ceasefire and dialogue
- Iran, which borders both Azerbaijan and Armenia, offered to broker peace talks
- President Donald Trump said the US wanted to stop the violence
What is the background?
In 1988, towards the end of Soviet rule, Azerbaijani troops and Armenian secessionists started a bloody war that left Nagorno-Karabakh in the hands of ethnic Armenians when an armistice was signed in 1994.
Parts of the Azerbaijani territory around the enclave are also under Armenian control.
The negotiations have so far not resulted in a lasting peace agreement and the dispute in the region remains one of the “frozen conflicts” of post-Soviet Europe.
Karabakh is the Russian rendering of an Azerbaijani word that means “black garden” while Nagorno is a Russian word that means “mountainous”. Ethnic Armenians prefer to call the region Artsakh, an ancient Armenian name for the region.
Over the years, soldiers on both sides have been killed in sporadic ceasefire violations. Inland Armenia has suffered severe economic problems due to the closure of the borders with Turkey and Azerbaijan.
Russia, France and the US jointly lead the Organization for Security and Cooperation in the European Minsk Group, which has tried to put an end to the dispute.
Related topics
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- Azerbaijan
- Armenia
- Nagorno-Karabakh
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