UN Team Enters Nagorno-Karabakh for First Time in 30 Years

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Facts

  • A UN mission entered Nagorno-Karabakh on Sunday for the first time in 30 years to assess the situation in the region as a mass exodus of ethnic Armenians begins to wind down following a 24-hour Azerbaijani military offensive two weeks ago that led to the surrender of local forces.1
  • According to the Armenian government, over 100K people — out of Nagorno-Karabakh's estimated population of 120K — have fled the region for Armenia via the Lachin corridor. The UN said, that many of those fleeing 'are hungry, exhausted, and need immediate assistance.“2
  • The International Red Cross and Red Crescent announced last week that it would need around $20M to help those fleeing Nagorno-Karabakh, while Azerbaijani Pres. Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan are set to hold Western-brokered talks on Thursday in Granada, Spain.3
  • Meanwhile, Azerbaijan, rejected Armenian accusations of 'ethnic cleansing' saying it was seeking the 'sustainable reintegration' of ethnic Armenians and separatist leaders into Azerbaijani society, while also detaining senior figures from its former government and military leadership.4
  • After the fall of the Soviet Union, two former Soviet republics, Armenia and Azerbaijan, went to war in the early 1990s, with Armenia capturing areas in and around Nagorno-Karabakh.5
  • A second war broke out in 2020, with Azerbaijan recapturing the territory and Russia playing a key role in negotiating a ceasefire. Tensions increased last year after Azerbaijan imposed a partial blockade of the Lachin Corridor — the only road linking Nagorno-Karabakh with Armenia.6

Sources: 1Reuters, 2BBC News (a), 3France 24, 4Al Jazeera, 5BBC News (b) and 6Guardian.

Narratives

  • Narrative A, as provided by The armenian weekly. Hundreds of years of Armenian history will soon be erased as Azerbaijan seeks to ethnically cleanse Nagorno-Karabakh, known as Artsakh to its indigenous Armenian population. The world, yet again, is watching in silence as long-dispossessed people are pushed out of their homeland.
  • Narrative B, as provided by Aze.media. Azerbaijan has finally triumphed and reclaimed its sovereignty over Nagorno-Karabakh. This will dislodge Armenia's military presence in the region and ensure the return of refugees displaced by Armenia in the first war — Azerbaijan only seeks to live in harmony with its neighbors.