Month: September 2020

Macron slams Turkey’s ‘bellicose’ talk on Karabakh conflict

Emil Lazarian
Arab News
Sept 30 2020
  • Macron condemned Turkey’s statements backing Azerbaijan in its bid to take back the breakaway region of Nagorny Karabakh
  • Armenia and Azerbaijan have been locked for decades in a territorial dispute over Karabakh
    • AFP
    RIGA: French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday condemned what he called Turkey’s “reckless and dangerous” statements backing Azerbaijan it its bid to take back the breakaway region of Nagorny Karabakh.
    Ankara said on Tuesday it was “fully ready” to help Azerbaijan recover Nagorny Karabakh, as armed conflict escalated with neighboring Armenia over the region.
    “I have noted Turkey’s political statements which I think are reckless and dangerous,” Macron told reporters in Latvia’s capital Riga during a visit to the Baltic EU state.
    “France remains extremely concerned about the bellicose comments that Turkey made in the last hours, which essentially remove any inhibitions from Azerbaijan in what would be a reconquest of northern Karabakh. That we will not accept,” he added.
    He also appeared to voice support for Yerevan: “I say to Armenia and to the Armenians, France will play its role.”
    But Macron also said it was too soon to speak of a regional conflict.
    He said he would discuss the tensions with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday evening and US President Donald Trump on Thursday before reporting on the situation to the European Council of EU leaders.
    Armenia and Azerbaijan have been locked for decades in a territorial dispute over Karabakh and have blamed each other for sparking fierce clashes that erupted on Sunday and have since caused nearly 100 confirmed deaths.
    The two sides have so far defied calls for a cease-fire.
    Ankara has backed Azerbaijan in the conflict and on Tuesday the Armenian defense ministry said a Turkish F-16 flying in support of Baku’s forces had downed an Armenian SU-25 warplane. Ankara fiercely denied the claim.
    Direct Turkish military action against Armenia would mark a major escalation after three days of heavy fighting between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces over Karabakh.
    And the UN Security Council called on both sides for an immediate end to the fighting.
    Viewing Azerbaijan as its close ally and Armenia as its historic foe, Russia also called on Turkey to stop proclaiming support for Azerbaijan and to work toward a diplomatic solution to the escalation, the deadliest since 2016.
    The European Union warned Monday regional powers not to interfere in fighting in Nagorny Karabakh, and condemned a “serious escalation” that threatens regional stability.

    Greek Foreign Minister’s Visit To Armenia "is Imminent" As Azerbaijani Aggression Continues

    Bedik Zaminian
    Greek City Times
    Sept 30 2020
    by Paul Antonopoulos

    The Greek Foreign Ministry has released a statement that says a Greek diplomatic visit to the Armenian capital of Yerevan “is imminent.”

    Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias wrote on Twitter: “In my letter to the OSCE Chairman-in-Office, I requested the extraordinary convening of its Permanent Council to escalate tensions in Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh), and tomorrow I will have a new communication with the Foreign Minister of Armenia Zohrab Mnatsakanyan.”

    The OSCE, Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, is an intergovernmental organization consisting of 57 countries with a focus on conflict prevention.

    “The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nikos Dendias, in his letter to the Albanian Presidency of the OSCE, requested the extraordinary convening of the Permanent Council of the Organization for the immediate discussion of the issue,” the statement said.

    “A planned visit of Nikos Dendias to Yerevan is imminent,” the Foreign Ministry statement continued.

    The statement then explained that conflict in Artsakh, or more commonly known as Nagorno-Karabakh, “has a serious impact on regional stability,” which is a view highlighted by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo during his recent visit to Greece.

    “The Greek initiative aims to hold a debate within the OSCE with the participation of the two stakeholders and to consider every possible way to de-escalate the crisis. The goal remains the urgent resumption of negotiations within the Minsk Group on the peaceful settlement of the dispute,” the statement continued, adding that Greece is ready “to contribute to the efforts for the immediate de-escalation of the crisis.”

    The Greek Foreign Ministry also highlighted that during the recent phone conversation between Dendias and Mnatsakanyan, “the close ties of friendship between Greece and Armenia were reaffirmed” and that the pair will have another conversation via video conference.

    “Greece is convinced that the crisis can only be resolved by peaceful means, through negotiations and not by arms,” the statement continued.

    “Greece disapproves of any third party intervention that incites tension. In this context, Turkey must refrain from actions and statements that move in this direction,” the statement concluded.

    On Sunday, Azerbaijan with Turkish-backed renewed its aggression against the Armenian-majority region of Artsakh, which although is recognized as a part of Azerbaijan internationally, achieved de facto independence after a decisive victory in 1994 during their War of Independence.

    Armenia Sheds Light on Chances of Su-30 and Iskander Deployment Against Azerbaijan

    Emil Lazarian
    Sputnik
    Sept 30 2020
    © Sputnik / Vladimir Astapkovich
    World

    09:58 GMT 30.09.2020Get short URL
    by Henry Batyaev

    The Armenian Defence Ministry previously warned that it could be forced to use weapons systems of greater range and destructive power after Azerbaijan resorted to a wide range of rocket systems and flame weapons in the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh.

    Armenia's Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has revealed whether Yerevan intends to deploy Iskander short-range ballistic missile systems and Sukhoi Su-30 fighter aircraft against Azerbaijan in the wake of Baku's use of rocket systems and flame weapons in Nagorno-Karabakh.

    Answering a question from the press, Pashinyan affirmed that the safety of Armenia and its citizens is a priority for the country.

    "At the same time, our task is to prevent the exacerbation of the situation…and address issues pertaining to long-term stability", the head of the government told journalists.

    Tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan reached a boiling point after the two countries accused each other of military provocations and exchanges of fire with civilian casualties in the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh.

    Armenia and the internationally unrecognised republic introduced martial law and general mobilisations, while Azerbaijan declared partial martial law and a partial mobilisation.

    The Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh, also known as the Republic of Artsakh, is a breakaway region with a predominantly Armenian population that proclaimed its independence from Azerbaijan in 1991 in a move opposed by Baku. This led to an armed conflict that concluded with a ceasefire agreement in 1994. 



    Nagorno-Karabakh: at least three Syrian fighters killed

    Jirair Kafian
    The Guardian, UK
    Sept 30 2020

    Syrians on the ground are believed to be contractors working for Turkish security companies

    At least three Syrian opposition fighters have been killed in skirmishes in the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh, the Guardian has learned, confirming earlier reports of foreign involvement in the battle between Armenian and Azerbaijan over the territory and increasing fears it may spiral into a wider regional conflict.

    As fierce combat between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces stretched into a fourth day, the presence of Syrians on the ground – believed to be contractors working for Turkish security companies – signalled a new frontier for Ankara’s increasingly assertive foreign policy.

    Turkish intervention in a dispute that foreign powers have traditionally sought to restrain was a dangerous new factor that threatened to make the fighting there longer and bloodier, analysts said.

    Turkey has declared its staunch support for Azerbaijan, while Russia has a military alliance with Armenia but has links and sells weapons to both sides. Turkey borders Armenia and Russia borders Azerbaijan.

    In Wednesday’s clashes, Armenia accused Azerbaijan of using heavily artillery across the entire front line and killing three civilians in the town of Martakert. Azerbaijan, which claims 14 of its civilians have died since Sunday, said it repelled several Armenian counter-attacks. It was not possible to independently verify either sides’ claims.

    Turkey and Azerbaijan have denied that Syrians are fighting in Nagorno-Karabakh and accused Armenia of deploying men from Kurdish militant groups, but have not produced proof.

    Several men in Syria’s last opposition stronghold of Idlib province told the Guardian this week that military commanders and brokers had offered them work guarding observation posts and oil and gas facilities in Azerbaijan on three or six month contracts at 7,000-10,000 Turkish lira (£700-£1,000) a month – relatively large sums of money which could help them escape Syria’s grinding poverty.

    Omar Abdo, the cousin of killed fighter Muhammed Shaalan, from the town of al Atarib, said that men in Shaalan’s unit in the al Hamza division had contacted the family on Tuesday to inform them of Shaalan’s death.

    “He told us he was leaving for Azerbaijan on 20 September. We don’t know the circumstances of his death and we were told it’s hard to bring his corpse at the moment, but they will try,” he said.

    The families of Hussein Talha, from Ain Jara village, and Sadam Aziz Azkor of al Kareem, also said unit commanders had called them on Tuesday to say that their relatives had been killed. Local media has reported another three dead.

    While observers have questioned why Baku’s highly-trained and well-armed military forces would be in need of assistance from Syrian mercenaries, the quick mobilisation of Syrians to the front lines, as well as the fact that Syrian volunteers said the recruitment drive began a month ago, suggested Azerbaijan had been planning its military campaign for some time.

    The fighting was the fiercest since a 1994 war over the region, “but it doesn’t yet look like a full-scale military offensive”, said Thomas de Waal, a senior fellow with Carnegie Europe.

    “So far, it’s an offensive on two or three fronts. These are small countries and they don’t want to lose men, which possibly explains shipping in these Syrians – you don’t have to sacrifice young Azerbaijani lives.”

    He said other powers such as Russia and Iran would be very reluctant to explicitly throw their weight behind Armenia. “Russia has its hands tied because it has relationships on both sides,” he said. “All they and Iran can do is try to get a ceasefire. Neither of them want to get involved on the ground.”

    While the UN and most of the international community have called for the resumption of peace talks, Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has struck a decidedly different tone, pledging his country’s full support for Baku against what he called “Armenian aggression”.

    Moscow appeared to be weighing its options, urging restraint and calling for a peaceful resolution.

    “We call on all countries, especially our partners such as Turkey, to do everything to convince the opposing parties to cease fire and return to peacefully resolving the conflict by politico-diplomatic means,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Tuesday.

    French president Emmanuel Macron – already at loggerheads with his Turkish counterpart in a dispute over oil and gas drilling rights in the eastern Mediterranean – said on Wednesday that “France remains extremely concerned by the warlike messages Turkey had in the last hours, which essentially remove any of Azerbaijan’s inhibitions in reconquering Nagorno-Karabakh. And that we won’t accept.”

    With the deployment of Syrians, Turkey may be seeking to repeat a strategy that worked well in Libya earlier this year. Ankara has facilitated the arrival of at least 10,000 Syrians to the north African state’s battlefields, helping turn the tide of the war in favour of the UN-backed government fighting renegade General Khalifa Haftar.

    Azeri-Armenian flare-up could explode into wider regional conflict

    Markos Nalchajian
    Al-Monitor
    Sept 30 2020

    The Nagorno-Karabagh clashes between Azerbaijan and Armenia could evolve into a war of attrition, but none of the regional heavyweights want a conventional war in the region.


    Metin Gurcan

    @Metin4020

    Sep 30, 2020

    The fresh flare-up between Azerbaijan and Armenia, which began with mortar and artillery exchanges early Sept. 27 and became full-fledged drone warfare within hours, continued into its fourth day Wednesday. How the conflict will evolve is a crucial question in an energy-rich region where Russia, Turkey and Iran are major stakeholders with competing interests. 

    The scene of the clashes — the mountainous Nagorno-Karabakh region — has been occupied by Armenia since a war in the 1990s despite being officially recognized as part of Azerbaijan. The clashes have concentrated in Murov Mountain dominating the north of the region and the Fuzuli area near the Iranian border to the south. 

    Tensions at the Azeri-Armenian borders spiked in early summer, leading to clashes in another area, Tavush, which lies on the route of crucial energy conduits, in July. A flurry of military activity followed in the region, with Azerbaijan holding joint military exercises with Turkey and Armenian troops joining Russian military drills.

    There are five main factors behind the flare-up:

    • Both Azerbaijan and Armenia have acquired new military capabilities, particularly in terms of drones; indirect fire; intelligence, surveillance, target acquisition and reconnaissance; command, control and communication; and proxy elements.

  • Major changes are taking place in the energy politics of the South Caucasus, encouraging a dramatic increase in Azerbaijan’s energy cooperation with Turkey, with which it has close political and ethnic bonds, while dealing blows to Iranian and Russian exports to Turkey.

  • The Azeri and Armenian governments are both under the strain of economic woes at home and need to distract their publics.

  • Nationalist and populist trends are on the rise in both Azerbaijan and Armenia, pushing their respective leaders Ilham Aliyev and Nikol Pashinyan to adopt more escalatory postures.

  • Moscow appears to be looking for an opportunity to weaken the Pashinyan government, which is seen as less friendly to Moscow than previous Armenian administrations. 

    • As for the military situation on the ground, a pattern has emerged since the 1990s, including in the faceoffs in April 2016 and most recently in July, whereby clashes arise between Azerbaijan and Armenia and continue for several days before Moscow intervenes. 

    Curiously, Moscow has been atypically low key thus far in the latest flare-up. The Kremlin comes across as unwilling to bring Aliyev and Pashinyan to the negotiating table, while the Russian media is busy conducting back-to-back interviews with the two leaders. 

    The Azeri army is in an offensive military posture, but the difficult terrain and the coming winter conditions present an advantage for the defending Armenian forces. The Azeri military seems to be missing the opportunity for a blitzkrieg, displaying a rather slow operational pace. Ideally, by now it should have managed to take control of most roads leading to Stepanakert, Nagorno-Karabakh’s capital, and seize a couple of urban centers such as Terter, Agdam and Fuzuli.

    Large armor-mechanized infantry maneuvers of corps size have yet to be seen on the battlefield, but both sides continue to reinforce their military buildups on the front lines. The Azeri military has been opening new fronts in a bid to force the Armenian forces to disperse. The Armenians, for their part, have been making use of their defensive position to rain artillery and rocket fire on the Azeri troops to slow and disconcert them. Meanwhile, kamikaze drones — a new element on the battlefield — have been hunting for high-value targets. 

    Air forces have been absent from the battlefield thus far, despite Armenia’s claim that one of its Su-25 jets was shot down by a Turkish F-16. Ankara has denied doing so. Without warplanes and attack helicopters, the Azeri army has failed to provide close air support to its ground forces to speed up their advance. 

    Similarly, there has been no military sign that either Armenia or Azerbaijan could use ballistic missiles, despite Armenian insinuations to the contrary. Armenia is in possession of Russian-made Iskander ballistic missiles with a range of up to 280 kilometers (174 miles), while the Azeri arsenal boasts Israeli-made LORA missiles with a range of up of 300 kilometers (186 miles).

    From a political standpoint, it seems fair to assume that neither Armenia nor Azerbaijan can use air power and ballistic missiles without Russian consent. Apparently, Moscow has not given the nod — at least for now — to the deployment of warplanes and ballistic missiles, a step that marks the threshold of a conventional war.

    Two major dynamics make the latest flare-up different from previous clashes.

    The first is the presence of drones. The Azeri army is using Turkish-made TB2 armed drones and Kargu-2 kamikaze drones, which are bound to change the nature of the clashes in the Caucasus. The Armenian army has apparently taken substantial bruises from drone attacks, caught unprepared for drone warfare in positions and defense lines vulnerable to air assaults.

    The second difference is the intensity of information wars and the role of social media. The Azeris are trying to showcase strength by circulating drone-strike videos on social media, while Armenia’s propaganda war has focused mostly on disseminating manipulative and deceptive reports aimed at generating Russian and Western support.

    How the conflict could evolve? Like previous flare-ups, the clashes are likely to stop before long, probably within a week, following outside intervention, resulting first in a lull on the front lines and then an end to most military activity in the area. Here are the main reasons such a prospect makes sense: 

    The Caucasus is Russia’s backyard and Russia would like to prevent NATO from using a regional conflict to enter what it regards as its "near abroad." Therefore, it has an interest in not letting the clashes escalate to the level of a conventional military confrontation.

    Turkey and Iran are both in the grips of economic crises and would like to avoid the repercussions of a regional war, including an increase in security costs, migration and the postponement of regional political and business initiatives. Turkey is keen to ensure the continuity of energy supplies from the Caspian basin.

    Also, Turkey's wariness of any fallout on its relationship with Russia in the Syrian and Libyan conflicts requires it to keep the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict on the level of low-intensity distraction battles. 

    Some Turkish observers, however, believe that Ankara seeks to use the clashes in Nagorno-Karabagh as leverage to balance Moscow in Libya and Syria’s rebel-held province of Idlib. Some even suggest that the flare-up could lead to an Astana-like process, in which Moscow and Ankara would become equal mediators between Azerbaijan and Armenia. Yet, such expectations appear unrealistic, given the power asymmetry between Turkey and Russia as well as Russia’s established ways of geopolitical thinking and doing business in the Caucasus.

    Moreover, the upcoming winter conditions, coupled with the harsh terrain, will limit large-scale military operations. Also, the crippled economies of both Azerbaijan and Armenia will not allow them to maintain a prolonged conventional military confrontation.

    Still, the front lines might not freeze completely this time, unlike previous flare-ups between Armenia and Azerbaijan. The prospect of a lengthy war of attrition, with episodes of low-intensity conflict and proxy, drone and information warfare, cannot be ruled out.

    Read more: #ixzz6ZYFqDamc

    Azerbaijan Says Combat to Continue Until Armenian Forces Leave

    Emil Lazarian
    Bloomberg
    Sept 30 2020
     
     
     
    By Sara Khojoyan and Zulfugar Agayev
    , 11:13 AM GMT+3 Updated on , 9:20 PM GMT+3
     
     
    •  Armenia accuses Turkey of role in Nagorno-Karabakh conflict
    •  Turkey backs Azerbaijan in fight, Russia calls to renew truce
     
     
     
    Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev vowed to continue a military campaign until Armenian forces leave disputed territory, while Armenia appealed for pressure against Turkey’s involvement in the conflict.
     
    As combat raged around the region of Nagorno-Karabakh for a fourth day, Aliyev said Azerbaijan is fighting “on our own soil.” It will stop only when Armenian forces leave Azerbaijani territory, he said Wednesday during a visit to wounded soldiers in the hospital.
     
    Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan told Iranian President Hassan Rouhani about Turkey’s role in the hostilities in a phone call Wednesday, the premier’s office said. Armenia’s Defense Ministry stepped up accusations against Turkey of military involvement, accusing Turkish F-16 fighter jets of taking part in operations with Azerbaijani forces over Nagorno-Karabakh.
     
    Turkey’s Defense Ministry rejected the allegations as an attempt by Armenia to gain more foreign support in its fight with Azerbaijan. Claims that Turkish warplanes and drones are in action against Armenia are untrue, it said in a statement. Azerbaijan also denied Turkish involvement.
     
    Armenian Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan accused Turkey of direct involvement in the conflict in phone talks with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov, according to a Foreign Ministry statement in Yerevan. Lavrov, who also spoke separately with Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov, repeated calls for a cease-fire and said Moscow was willing to organize “relevant contacts” between the two sides.
     
    Russia’s Foreign Ministry said Wednesday it was concerned by reports that “militants of illegal armed groups” from Syria and Libya were being sent to Nagorno-Karabakh and demanded their immediate withdrawal. Armenia has complained that foreign mercenaries are fighting alongside Azerbaijani troops, while Azerbaijan alleges Kurdish militants have joined Armenian forces.
     
    The fighting shows no sign of easing, despite a call from the United Nations Security Council on Tuesday for Armenia and Azerbaijan to “immediately stop fighting, de-escalate tensions and return to meaningful negotiations.” China, the U.S. and the European Union have all weighed in with calls for a truce, to little effect.
     
    Lavrov and EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell discussed the crisis late Wednesday, including the need for “parties to the conflict and other countries to show maximum restraint,” the Foreign Ministry in Moscow said in a statement.
     
    Borrell said on Twitter he spoke with Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu about Nagorno-Karabakh and “the importance of de-escalation.”
     
    The deepening conflict in the Caucasus region adds to tensions between Russia and Turkey over proxy conflicts in Syria and Libya. Russia has an army base in Armenia and the two nations have a mutual-defense pact, though it doesn’t cover the disputed territory. Azerbaijan hosted large-scale joint exercises with the Turkish military last month.
     
     
    <span class="sewl9y8hlcg6cvc"><br></span>
    Despite decades of U.S., Russian and French mediation to resolve the conflict, fighting has repeatedly broken out since Armenians took control of Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding districts from Azerbaijan in a war after the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991. The violence that erupted Sunday is more intense and widespread than at any time since Russia brokered a 1994 cease-fire to halt the war that killed about 30,000 and displaced more than a million people.
     
    While Russian President Vladimir Putin has urged both sides to halt violence, Moscow has held back so far from any intervention in its former Soviet backyard. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has openly backed Azerbaijan, saying decades of international negotiations over Nagorno-Karabakh had failed.
     
    Turkey’s declarations on the conflict are “dangerous,” French President Emmanuel Macron told reporters in Latvia’s capital, Riga, on Wednesday. France “won’t accept any escalatory message” on the crisis, he said.
     
    “We will continue to stand with Azerbaijan,” Erdogan’s communication chief, Fahrettin Altun, said on Twitter.
     
    The region contains important energy and transport projects that connect central Asia to Europe bypassing Russia. They include the U.S.-backed Southern Gas Corridor link and a BP Plc-operated oil pipeline that runs less than 50 kilometers (30 miles) from the conflict zone and has capacity to export as much as 1.2 million barrels daily from Baku to Turkey’s Ceyhan.
     
    The pipelines haven’t been targeted in previous conflicts but may be vulnerable to any shift in the fighting between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces.
     
    — With assistance by Selcan Hacaoglu, and Sotiris Nikas
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     

    Russia’s Lavrov Says Moscow Willing to Host Azeri and Armenian Counterparts for Talks

    Hambik Zargarian
    US News
    Sept 30 2020
    By Reuters, Wire Service Content Sept. 30, 2020


    MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Wednesday that Moscow was willing to host the foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan for talks, a ministry statement cited him as saying.

    He said Russia would continue to work both independently and together with other representatives of the Minsk group of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) to mediate in the conflict between Azerbaijan and ethnic Armenian forces, which has seen the fiercest fighting since the mid-1990s in recent days.

    (Reporting by Mark Trevelyan; Writing by Polina Ivanova; editing by John Stonestreet)

    Turkey has allegedly recruited Syrian mercenaries to fight in Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict

    Vatche Chakhmakhchian
    THE WEEK
    Sept 30 2020
    12:30 p.m.

    The conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh territory has shown no signs of slowing down, and Turkey's involvement on behalf of Azerbaijan also appears to be growing, which has been a concern among the international community since fighting broke out this weekend.

    Armenia has accused Turkey of shooting down one of its jets, which Turkey denied, and there are multiple reports, including from BBC and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, that Ankara has been recruiting hundreds of mercenaries from Syria to aid Azerbaijan in the conflict (SOHR also reports Armenian-born Syrians have also been transported to Armenia to join the fight, per BBC).

    BBC Arabic spoke to one man who alleged he was recruited by the commander of the Hamza Division of the Turkish-backed Syrian "National Army" for a $2,000 per month. The details obtained by BBC appear to match those provided by other sources; there have also been reports of dozens of casualties, with sources in Syria telling BBC that families are receiving death notices from Azerbaijan.

    One of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's advisers, Ilnur Cervik, has dismissed the allegations, which he claims are part of a "disinformation campaign." Read more at BBC. Tim O'Donnell


    Russia claims Turkey has sent ‘terrorists’ from Syria and Libya into Nagorno-Karabakh warzone as fighting between Armenia and Azerbaijan escalates

    Mary Lazarian
    Daily Mail, UK
    Sept 30 2020

    • Russia today said that illegal Syrian and Libyan fighters were being sent to the Nagorno-Karabakh region 
    • Despite Azerbaijan and ally Turkey denying that F-16 downed Armenian SU-25, defence ministry in Yerevan named dead pilot as Major Valeri Danelin and published photos of jet painted in Armenian Air Force colours 
    • Meanwhile Azerbaijan claimed it had 'neutralised' 2,300 Armenian soldiers as fighting entered fourth day
    • It is the worst eruption of violence between the two countries since a 1994 ceasefire over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh territory which is landlocked in Azerbaijan but largely inhabited by Armenians
    • Turkey is stridently backed Azerbaijan, raising fears that Russia – which has a military base in Armenia – could be drawn into a proxy war after Moscow and Anakara came close to trading blows in Syria last year
    • French President Emmanuel Macron today slammed Turkey's fighting talk as 'reckless and dangerous' after Ankara pledged its full support for Azerbaijan to reclaim the ethnically-Armenian Nagorno-Karabakh territory 

    By Ross Ibbetson For Mailonline

    Russia has accused Turkey of sending 'terrorists' from Syria and Libya into the Nagorno-Karabakh region, where fierce fighting has raged for the past four days between Azerbaijan and ethnic Armenian forces.

    Russia's foreign ministry said today that Syrian and Libyan fighters from illegal armed groups were being sent to the region. 

    Russia called on the countries involved to prevent the use of 'foreign terrorists and mercenaries' in the conflict.

    Two Syrian rebel sources have said that Turkey is sending Syrian rebel fighters to support Azerbaijan, which Turkey and Azerbaijan have denied. 

    Earlier today, Armenia revealed photos of the wreckage of its SU-25 fighter jet which it claims was shot down by a Turkish  F-16 amid accusations that Ankara is throwing its military might behind Azerbaijan.

    Azerbaijan today announced it had 'neutralised' 2,300 Armenian soldiers as fighting entered a fourth day in the worst eruption of violence between the two countries since a 1994 ceasefire over an Azerbaijani territory which is largely inhabited by Armenians.

    Despite Azerbaijan and Turkey denying that an F-16 had downed Armenia's SU-25, the defence ministry in Yerevan named its dead pilot as Major Valeri Danelin and published photos of the jet painted in the Armenian Air Force colours, smouldering on a mountainside.

    Turkey has been stridently backing Muslim Azerbaijan, raising fears that Russia – which has a military base in Christian Armenia – could be drawn into a proxy war after Moscow and Anakara came close to trading blows in Syria last year. 

    French President Emmanuel Macron today slammed Turkey's fighting talk as 'reckless and dangerous' after Ankara pledged its full support for Azerbaijan to reclaim the ethnically-Armenian Nagorno-Karabakh territory.

    The Kremlin, which also wields influence over the former Soviet republic of Azerbaijan, has called on the hostilities to be 'immediately ended' and warned Turkey not to 'add fuel to the flames.'  

    Azerbaijan said today it has killed or wounded at least 2,300 Armenian troops so far in the battle which started on Sunday.

    The defence ministry, which has been tweeting numerous videos of its strikes, said it had destroyed 130 tanks and armoured vehicles, 200 artillery and missile systems and 50 anti-tank guns.  

    Macron on Wednesday pledged his support to Yerevan, telling reporters: 'I say to Armenia and to the Armenians, France will play its role.

    But the French president also said it was too soon to speak of a regional conflict.

    He said he would discuss the tensions with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday evening and US President Donald Trump on Thursday before reporting on the situation to the European Council of EU leaders. 

    Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Wednesday that Moscow was willing to host the foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan for talks, a ministry statement cited him as saying.

    He said Russia would continue to work both independently and together with other representatives of the Minsk group of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) to mediate in the conflict. 

    Ethnic-Armenian separatists in Nagorno-Karabakh are fighting for secession from Turkish-backed Azerbaijan and the dispute has led to decades of unresolved violence.  

    Erdogan's aide Fahrettin Altun has said that Turkey 'stands with Azerbaijan, our friend and brethren' despite UN condemnation for the violence. 

    'Let there be no doubt that the world will hear our roar if Azerbaijan were to suffer from the slightest injustice under international law,' he said on Tuesday.

    Azerbaijan also aired footage of two Armenian tanks being blown up on the battlefield, while Armenia claimed to have taken out 80 armoured vehicles, 49 drones and four helicopters in the latest fighting which has killed dozens of people, allegedly including civilians.

    However, Altun dismissed the F-16 claim as 'absolutely untrue' while Azerbaijan described it as 'yet another lie of Armenian propaganda'. 'Armenia should withdraw from the territories under its occupation instead of resorting to cheap propaganda tricks,' Altun said.  

    Russian-backed Armenia warned that it would deploy more destructive weapons in the conflict because of what it described as an Azerbaijani offensive, saying the fighting had been 'elevated to a new level'. 

    Armenia last night accused Turkey of 'supporting Azerbaijan to carry out genocidal acts', a reference to the early 20th-century massacre which it calls the Armenian Genocide and which still poisons relations between Turkey and Armenia. 

    Both nations have accused each other of firing into each other's territory beyond the Karabakh region, raising fears of an all-out war which could draw in nuclear-armed Russia.  

    The Kremlin has a military base in Armenia but has called for the hostilities to be 'immediately ended' – warning Turkey not to 'add fuel to the flames' by raising the prospect of intervention. 

    US secretary of state Mike Pompeo said Tuesday that 'both sides need to stop the violence' while German chancellor Angela Merkel called for an 'immediate ceasefire' and France called for a revival of peace talks.

    Martial law has been declared in both countries and Armenia has banned men over 18 in its military reserves from leaving the country as the warfare continues despite global appeals for calm. 

    Azerbaijan's defence ministry said today that the opposing forces attempted to recover lost ground by launching counter-attacks in the directions of Fizuli, Jabrayil, Agdere and Terter. 

    The ministry said there was fighting around Fizuli on Tueday morning and the Armenian army shelled the Dashkesan region on the border between the two countries, miles away from Nagorno-Karabakh. 

    Armenia denied those claims, but reported fighting throughout the night and said that Nagorno-Karabakh's army repelled attacks in several directions along the line of contact. 

    Both sides blame each other for causing the latest flare-up, with Armenia claiming that the separatists in Nagorny-Karabakh are resisting a 'thoroughly planned attack'. 

    'Defence forces of Nagorno-Karabakh are left with little option but to defend themselves,' Armenia's foreign ministry claimed.  

    Military leaders in the Armenian enclave say that 84 servicemen on their side have been killed so far, while both sides blame the other for alleged civilian deaths. 

    Azerbaijan says 10 civilians have died on its side, but has yet to give details on military casualties. 

    Armenia claimed on Tuesday that a nine-year-old girl was killed in shelling, while her mother and a brother were wounded, while Azerbaijan says five members of a family died in the gunfire.  

    Armenia's defence ministry said a civilian bus was set on fire after being hit by an Azerbaijani unmanned drone. 

    Armenia accuses its enemy of using Smerch and TOS-1A rocket launchers, saying it was forced to use 'military hardware with larger power' in response.    

    'Since early morning the Azerbaijani side resumed large-scale offensive ops. TOS-1A heavy flamethrowers are being employed. The use of TOS, Smerch and other large-caliber systems changes the philosophy and the scale of mil ops, elevating them to a new level of escalation,' claimed defence spokeswoman Shushan Stepanyan. 

    As a result, Armenian forces are 'compelled to use pieces of equipment and munitions designed to engage wide area targets, intended for large and indiscriminate destruction of manpower, and static and mobile property alike,' she warned. 

    Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan came down firmly on the side of Azerbaijan, which shares ethnic, cultural and linguistic ties with the larger power. 

    'The time has come for the crisis in the region that started with the occupation of Nagorno-Karabakh to be put to an end,' Erdogan said. 'Now Azerbaijan must take matters into its own hands.' 

    Azerbaijani president Ilham Aliyev on Monday ordered partial military mobilisation and General Mais Barkhudarov vowed to 'fight to the last drop of blood in order to completely destroy the enemy and win'. 

    Armenia has accused Turkey of sending mercenaries to back Azerbaijan, a claim which Erdogan's government denies. 

    Turkey informed the fighters they would be tasked with 'guarding border regions' in Azerbaijan in return for wages of up to $2,000, said Rami Abdul Rahman, the head of the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

    Anna Naghdalyan, a spokeswoman for Armenia's foreign ministry, said people in Nagorno-Karabakh were 'fighting against a Turkish-Azerbaijani alliance'. 

    'Turkey, which a century ago annihilated Armenian people in their historical homeland and justifies that crime, now supports Azerbaijan by all possible means to carry out same genocidal acts in South Caucasus,' she said. 

    As many as 1.5million Armenians were rounded up and killed by their Turkish rulers in mass killings which started during World War I, but Turkey fiercely disputes the term 'genocide'. 

    Turkey has also conducted drills with F-16 jets in Azerbaijan, but Baku denied claims that it has any of the fighter planes or that one been involved in a shootdown.

    Russia has previously supplied Armenia with weapons in the sensitive region, where pipelines shipping Caspian oil and natural gas from Azerbaijan to the world pass close to Nagorno-Karabakh.

    Russian President Vladimir Putin yesterday urged the opposing sides in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict to hold their fire, during a conversation with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, the Kremlin said in a statement.

    Putin emphasised the urgent need for a ceasefire and for all sides to take measures to de-escalate the crisis, the Kremlin said. 

    Azerbaijani state energy company SOCAR said yesterday that the country's oil and gas infrastructure was safe thanks to measures taken by the army.  

    The report of Turkish intervention comes after the European Union warned regional powers not to interfere in the fighting and condemned a 'serious escalation' that threatens regional stability. 

    Omer Celika , spokesman for Erdogan's ruling party, denied reports that Turkey had sent arms or foreign fighters to Azerbaijan.

    'Armenia is disturbed by Turkey's solidarity with Azerbaijan and is producing lies against Turkey,' Celik said. 

    Erdogan criticized France, the US and Russia – the three chairs of the so-called Minsk group that was set up in 1992 to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict – saying they had failed to resolve the issue for 30 years.

    'They have done their best not to solve this issue. And now they come and counsel and issue threats. They say, is Turkey here, is the Turkish military here?,' Erdogan said. 

    France said yesterday it would 'trigger a co-ordination of the Minsk Group' in the coming days to 'find a way out' of the crisis.  

    Armenia and Karabakh declared martial law and military mobilisation on Sunday, while Azerbaijan imposed military rule and a curfew in large cities. 

    Analysts warn that the conflict could escalate into a proxy conflict between Moscow and Ankara, who both wield influence in Syria and Libya already. 

    Michael Carpenter, a former Pentagon official, said any Turkish involvement would be 'hugely destabilising' and 'could lead to a proxy war between Turkey and Russia'. 

    Rita Katz, director of the SITE Intelligence monitoring group, said the two countries 'continue to vie for control across region, backing proxies on contentious non-secular lines' – referring to the fact that Azerbaijan is a majority-Muslim country, while most Armenians are Christians. 

    In addition to the EU and Russia, France, Germany, Italy and the United States have urged a ceasefire.  

    President Donald Trump said on Sunday that the United States would seek to end the violence. 'We're looking at it very strongly,' he told a news briefing. 'We have a lot of good relationships in that area. We'll see if we can stop it.' 

    Democratic nominee Joe Biden urged the White House to push for more observers along the ceasefire line and accused Russia of 'cynically providing arms to both sides.'  

    Erdogan last night discussed the crisis in a phone call with British PM Boris Johnson, with Downing Street calling for 'urgent de-escalation in the region'. 

    German chancellor Angela Merkel – who has clashed with Erdogan in the past – has called for an 'immediate ceasefire and a return to the negotiating table' after speaking with the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan. 

    Five European countries – Belgium, Estonia, France, Germany and Britain – asked for a closed-door meeting of the UN Security Council on the escalating conflict on Tuesday.

    UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres spoke to both countries' leaders and called for 'an immediate stop to the fighting, a de-escalation of tensions and a return to meaningful negotiations without preconditions or delay. 

    Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the situation 'is a cause for concern for Moscow and other countries.'

    'We believe that the hostilities should be immediately ended,' Peskov said, adding that the process of resolving the conflict should shift into 'a politico-diplomatic' dimension. 

    Nuclear-armed Russia has a military base in Armenia and considers it to be a strategic partner in the South Caucasus region, supplying the ex-Soviet country with weapons. 

    The Kremlin has cast itself as a mediator but Azerbaijan claimed last month that Moscow was 'intensively arming Armenia' after earlier clashes in July.  

    Hostilities this year have been the worst since 2016, when intense fighting killed dozens and threatened to escalate into all-out war. 

    Nagorno-Karabakh broke away from Azerbaijan in a conflict that broke out as the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991.

    Although a ceasefire was agreed in 1994, after thousands of people were killed and many more displaced, Azerbaijan and Armenia frequently accuse each other of attacks around Nagorno-Karabakh and along the separate Azeri-Armenian frontier. 

    During the worst recent Karabakh clashes in April 2016, around 110 people were killed. 

    In July 2020, heavy clashes along the two countries' shared border – hundreds of miles from Karabakh – claimed the lives of at least 17 soldiers from both sides. 

    See photos and videos at the link below

    France and Turkey at odds as Karabakh fighting divides NATO allies

    Boris Nahapetian
    Reuters
    Sept 30 2020

    By Nvard Hovhannisyan, Nailia Bagirova

    YEREVAN/BAKU (Reuters) – NATO allies France and Turkey traded angry recriminations on Wednesday as international tensions mounted over the fiercest clashes between Azerbaijan and ethnic Armenian forces since the mid-1990s.

    On the fourth day of fighting, Azerbaijan and the ethnic Armenian enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh accused each other of shelling along the line of contact that divides them in the volatile, mountainous South Caucasus.

    Dozens have been reported killed and hundreds wounded in fighting since Sunday that has spread well beyond the enclave’s boundaries, threatening to spill over into all-out war between the former Soviet republics of Azerbaijan and Armenia.

    The re-eruption of one of the “frozen conflicts” dating back the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union has raised concerns about stability in the South Caucasus, a corridor for pipelines carrying oil and gas to world markets, and raised fears that regional powers Russia and Turkey could be drawn in.

    Armenian defence ministry spokeswoman Shushan Stepanyan tweeted video of huge explosions from artillery fire, accompanied by dramatic pounding music and captioned “Takeover of an Azerbaijan position”.

    Azerbaijan released footage showing its forces firing volleys of rockets at enemy emplacements, as well as grey smoke rising from inside Nagorno-Karabakh as it was battered by Azeri artillery. Photographs taken in the Azeri town of Terter showed people taking cover in dug-outs, and damaged buildings which residents said had been struck by Armenian shells.

    Some of Turkey’s NATO allies are increasingly alarmed by Ankara’s stance on Nagorno-Karabakh, a breakaway region inside Turkey’s close ally Azerbaijan that is run by ethnic Armenians but is not recognised by any country as an independent republic.

    Echoing remarks by President Tayyip Erdogan, Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Wednesday Turkey would “do what is necessary” when asked whether Ankara would offer military support if Azerbaijan asked for it.

    Related Coverage

    Cavusoglu also said French solidarity with Armenia amounted to supporting Armenian occupation in Azerbaijan.

    French President Emmanuel Macron, whose country is home to many people of Armenian ancestry, hit back during a visit to Latvia. He said France was extremely concerned by “warlike messages” from Turkey “which essentially remove any of Azerbaijan’s inhibitions in reconquering Nagorno-Karabakh”.

    “And that we won’t accept,” he said.

    Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Moscow was willing to host the foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan for talks, his ministry cited him as saying.

    He held separate phone conversations with both foreign ministers, and the ministry said he called for a ceasefire and a halt to “provocative warlike rhetoric”.

    Lavrov said Russia would continue to work both independently and together with other representatives of the Minsk group of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) to mediate in the conflict.

    France has said it wants the Minsk Group – which is led by Moscow, Paris and Washington – to address the conflict. European Union leaders will also discuss it at a summit later this week, a German government source said.

    Nagorno-Karabakh, a mountainous enclave, broke away from Azerbaijan in the 1990s in a war that killed an estimated 30,000 people and displaced hundreds of thousands.

    In Wednesday’s clashes, Armenian media said three civilians had been killed and several wounded by shelling in the town of Martakert in Nagorno-Karabakh.

    One person was killed and three wounded by Armenian fire on the town of Horadiz in southern Azerbaijan, the Azeri Prosecutor’s office said, bringing the total number of Azeri civilians killed to 15 since fighting began on Sunday.

    Azerbaijan said ethnic Armenian forces attempted to recover lost ground by launching counter-attacks in the direction of Madagiz, but Azeri forces repelled the attack.

    Armenia said the Azeri army had been shelling the whole front line during the night and two Azeri drones were shot down over Stepanakert, Nagorno-Karabakh’s administrative centre. It was not possible to independently confirm the report.

    Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, who spoke to Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday, said he was not considering asking for Russia’s help at this point under a post-Soviet security treaty, but did not rule out doing so.

    The Kremlin said Russia’s military was closely following developments.

    Armenia says one of its SU-25 warplanes was shot down by a Turkish fighter jet on Tuesday but the report was denied by Turkey and Azeri officials.

    Russia’s foreign ministry said Syrian and Libyan fighters from illegal armed groups were being sent to the Nagorno-Karabakh region and urged countries involved to prevent the use of “foreign terrorists and mercenaries” in the conflict.

    Two Syrian rebel sources have told Reuters that Turkey is sending rebels from areas of northern Syria it controls to support Azerbaijan. Turkey and Azerbaijan denied this.

    Additional reporting by Maria Kiselyova, Dmitry Antonov, Polina Ivanova and Alexander Marrow in Moscow; Margarita Antidze in Tbilisi; Tuvan Gumrukcu in Ankara; Michel Rose in Paris and Sabine Siebold in Berlin; Writing by Timothy Heritage, Editing by Mark Trevelyan and Mark Heinrich

    https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-armenia-azerbaijan/france-and-turkey-at-odds-as-karabakh-fighting-divides-nato-allies-idUKKBN26L121