Category: 2022

Festival: Armenia’s Urvakan Festival Reveals First Acts For 2022 Edition

Kajoyan Gevork
Aug 10 2022

aya and ZULI are among the artists playing the Dilijan event's second edition this September


Armenian festival Urvakan has revealed the first wave of acts playing its 2022 event.

Returning for its second edition at the Armenian Composers' Union Resort in Dilijan, the festival will go ahead for the first time since 2019. Among those billed to perform are aya, ZULI, Deena Abdelwahed, Jay Glass Dubs, Senyawa, Zoë Mc Pherson and Lara Sarkissian. Nicolás Jaar will also team up with Vincent de Belleval to present a performance titled Retaining The Energy, But Losing The Image.

Urvakan will take place from September 23 to 25, 2022. Find more information here.

Nagorno-Karabakh: partial mobilization cancelled

Garnik Zakarian
Caucasian Knot
Aug 10 2022
The President of Nagorno-Karabakh has signed a decree on the demobilization of the citizens called up for service during the partial mobilization announced on August 3, the "News.am" writes with reference to the President's press service.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on August 3, the Azerbaijani Ministry of Defence (MoD) reported the death of a soldier during shelling from the territory where Russian peacemakers are temporarily stationed. In its turn, the Nagorno-Karabakh's MoD announced the death of its military and the wounding of 15 others as a result of shelling conducted by the Azerbaijani Army. Given the aggravation of the situation on the contact line, Araik Arutyunyan, the President of Nagorno-Karabakh, signed a decree on partial mobilization.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on at 12:00 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.

See earlier reports:
Nagorno-Karabakh announces partial mobilization, Azerbaijan reports about a soldier perished in Lachin District, Stepanakert states Baku's demand to use highway bypassing Lachin Corridor.

Source: Caucasian Knot
Источник: https://www.eng.kavkaz-uzel.eu/articles/60983/
© Кавказский Узел

Nagorno-Karabakh accuses Azerbaijan of shelling attacks

Mary Lazarian
Caucasian Knot
Aug 9 2022
Today, the Nagorno-Karabakh Defence Army has reported that the Azerbaijani troops violated the ceasefire several times.

At the same time, according to the Nagorno-Karabakh Defence Army, the situation on the line of contact is relatively stable, “despite the ongoing tension.” “Russian peacekeepers continue steps to stabilize the situation,” the Nagorno-Karabakh Defence Army reports.

The “Caucasian Knot” has reported that on August 8, Azerbaijan complained about ten shelling attacks on positions per day. According to Baku, the positions of the Azerbaijani troops in the Kelbadjar and Lachin Districts were shelled six times from the positions of the Armenian militaries. Furthermore, the positions of the Azerbaijani troops in the Kelbadjar, Goranboy, and Fuzuli Districts were shelled four times. Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh denied Baku’s information.

The situation in the Karabakh conflict zone escalated on August 3. After an Azerbaijani military got a fatal wound at the border, Azerbaijan launched the operation “Retribution” in Karabakh, during which two militaries were killed and 19 people were wounded. Meanwhile, the Azerbaijani troops occupied the heights of Sarybaba in the Shusha District and Girkhgyz in the Khodjaly District. On August 6, Baku announced the capture of another strategic height. According to analysts, that gave Azerbaijan a tactical advantage.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on August 9, 2022 at 02:29 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.

See earlier reports:
Armenian soldier wounded on contact line, Analysts treat Nagorno-Karabakh's status as reason for conflict escalation, Azerbaijan claims capture of strategic height in Nagorno-Karabakh.

Source: Caucasian Knot
Источник:
© Кавказский Узел

Parents of Armenian militaries demand to name those responsible for their deaths

Vicken Chmshkian
Caucasian Knot
Aug 10 2022
The parents of the military servicemen who perished in the 2020 Karabakh went out to protest at the building of the Armenian Ministry of Defence (MoD). They seek a meeting with the leadership of the MoD and Pavlik Kyaramyan, the regiment commander, whom they treat responsible for the deaths of their sons.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that relatives of the Armenian war casualties are regularly holding protests. On July 6, several dozen parents demanded from the country's National Security Service (NSS) to interrogate the Prime Minister, Nikol Pashinyan, and change the article against him to treason.

Today, a protest action is held by parents of the militaries who perished in the 44-day war near the MoD building. They are outraged by the fact that Pavlik Kyaramyan, the commander of the 4th regiment of the 5th defensive region of Martakert, was awarded the Degree I Order of the "Combat Cross", the "News.am" reports.

The "Combat Cross" Order is awarded for exceptional courage, dedication and skill in defending the Motherland, the website of the President of Armenia explains.

A similar protest action was held on July 29. Then, the MoD assured that it would respond within three days about the meeting with Kyaramyan, but protesters received no answer, Vakhid Saakyan, the father of the deceased military serviceman, Zhora Saakyan, has stated.

According to the father, Kyaramyan must explain the circumstances of their sons' deaths, why they ended up in a combat position without a commander, and other issues, the "Panorama" writes.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on at 12:47 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.

See earlier reports:
After night outdoor, relatives of Armenian POWs stop their protest, Relatives of perished militaries demand to interrogate Pashinyan, Relatives of perished militaries unhappy with Armenian GPO's answer to their demands.

Source: Caucasian Knot
Источник:
© Кавказский Узел

Peacekeepers or border guards? Russian checkpoints on the roads of Armenia

Varazdat Torgomian

Aug 9 2022




  • JAMnews
  • Yerevan

Russian checkpoints in Meghri

“Russian border guards a few months ago set up roadblocks on the roads leading from Meghri to Agarak and Shvanidzor, Alvank, Nrnadzor.” Thus a Maghri community representative explained the situation in the south of Armenia.

For several days now information has been circulating on social networks that Russian peacekeepers have set up checkpoints and are checking documents on the Agarak-Meghri section of the road. However, according to the words of the head of the Meghri local administration, as well as a message from Russian border control, they were not talking about peacekeepers, but about border guards.

Since the autumn of 2020, the Russian peacekeeping contingent has been stationed in Nagorno-Karabakh. Information about the appearance of checkpoints allegedly set up by peacekeepers near Armenian towns has caused confusion among residents. There have been discussions on social media about what this could be.

The Border Department of the FSB of Russia protects the state border of Armenia with Turkey and Iran on the basis of the interstate agreement “On the status of the border troops of the Russian Federation stationed on the territory of the Republic of Armenia and the conditions for their activities,” which the parties signed in 1992.

According to the Russian Federal Security Service’s border department, the new checkpoints were installed “in agreement with the Armenian government, the National Security Service, and other competent authorities.” Meanwhile, during this time, no Armenian state institution has announced that border checkpoints would be set up on roads in the southern Armenian region of Syunik – and not at the border, but near towns.

All information known at this time.

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The border department of the Russian FSB in Armenia reported that the need for increased control is caused by tension at the Armenian-Iranian border:

“The tense operational situation has been caused by attempts to smuggle narcotics and psychoactive substances (hashish, methamphetamine, heroin) from Iran to Armenia.”

In its message, the Border Department also brought up an earlier violation of the Armenian border.

In 2021, Russian border guards arrested two people with weapons, grenade launchers and a large amount of ammunition. The incident occurred on the territory under the control of the Meghri border detachment. The culprits entered from the Iranian border.

According to the border department, since the beginning of 2022 several new, equipped border control posts have been installed in the south of Armenia to “carry out inspection of persons and vehicles.” The goal is to identify, prevent and stop “smuggling, illegal migration and other offenses.”

The statement also says that, if it becomes necessary to search for and prosecute border violators, measures are to be taken not selectively but without exception:

“Citizens moving within the border zone, please treat with understanding the legitimate requirements of law enforcement agencies.”

Who is Ebrahim Raisi, what is the influence of Iran in the South Caucasus? The context and prospects were commented on for JAMnews by experts in Baku, Yerevan and Tbilisi

Commenting on news of the appearance of checkpoints in the Syunik region, the head of the town of Meghri, Bagrat Zakaryan, stressed that the Russian border guards have set up five new modular checkpoints here.

“Checks fully comply with laws adopted in Armenia and government decisions,” he said, referring to the law “On the State Border” and the government’s decree “On the establishment of a border regime on the state border of Armenia and the regime of checkpoints across the state border,” which went into effect on 2011.

However, Zakaryan also acknowledged that the checkpoints create problems for both local residents and tourists:

“When tourists want to go to Nrnadzor, Shvanidzor, in the countryside, they face a serious problem. They are not allowed in until the officers of the border military unit check the presence of their passports and verify them in the manner prescribed by law,” Zakaryan said.

How is Iran trying to intensify its involvement in the geopolitics of the S. Caucasus and why is it trying to preserve its 42 km border with Armenia

“According to what clause of what agreement is a checkpoint on the Meghri-Agarak road provided? Let’s face the fact that even on social media there is very little public dissatisfaction with the situation; all this is being carried out without resistance from the public.”

“A Russian checkpoint in the Meghri-Agarak area, that is on the sovereign territory of Armenia, can be equated with an act of occupation against Armenia de facto.”

“The opposition took to the streets in protest of Russian border guards blocking the Meghri-Agarak road? Are you giving up the Armenia-Iran border to the Russians so easily? What else are you giving away?”

“These traitors give away the country piecemeal, and you drink tea and coffee in cafes for yourself.”

“If we remove the Russian “boot” from Armenia, we will have a country. And if not, we will lose everything.”


NEW SOUTH WALES PARLIAMENTARY FRIENDS OF ARMENIA CALL ON AUSTRALIAN GOVERNMENT TO CONDEMN AZERBAIJANI AGGRESSION

Emil Lazarian
   Aug 10 2022
SYDNEY: On Tuesday 9th August 2022, the convenors of the New South Wales Armenia-Australia Friendship Group appealed to Australia’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, Senator the Hon. Penny Wong, requesting the Federal Government publicly condemns Azerbaijan’s latest attacks against the indigenous Armenians of the Republic of Artsakh, reported the Armenian National Committee of Australia (ANC-AU).

Member for Davidson and Speaker of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly, the Hon. Jonathan O’Dea and Member of the Legislative Council, the Hon. Walt Secord––who are Chair and Vice-Chair of the Armenia-Australia Friendship Group––raised concern over the latest unprovoked ceasefire violation committed by Azerbaijan.

Significantly, their letter voiced the bipartisan group’s objection over the targeted attacks against civilian settlements in Martuni, and attempts by Azerbaijan to cross the predetermined line of contact as determined by the November 2020 trilateral agreement, violating several fundamental human rights, resulting in the death of two Armenian servicemen and leaving 19 wounded.

The letter co-signed by O’Dea and Secord read: “The Russian Defence Ministry and its peacekeeping contingents stationed in Artsakh verified on Tuesday that the attacks were launched by Azerbaijani Armed Forces using a range of weapons. Azerbaijan’s Defence Ministry even boasted about their attacks on video via social media.”

“The parliamentary group ask that your government seriously consider publicly condemning Azerbaijan’s recent illegal violations of the ceasefire agreement,” their letter added.

ANC-AU Executive Director, Michael Kolokossian said: “Azerbaijan’s criminal behaviour and use of force is the most significant violation of the ceasefire agreement recorded since the end of the 2020 Nagorno Karabakh war, and through this brute force has cornered the Republics of Armenia and Artsakh into concessions that go beyond the scope of the November 9 ceasefire agreement, specifically the closure of the only land corridor between Artsakh and Armenia.”

This new wave of aggression has resulted in the forced displacement and ethnic cleansing of thousands of Armenians from the villages of Berdzor and Aghavno, located inside the Berdzor (Lachin) corridor, which represents a clear violation of Article 7, Section 1(d) of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, prohibiting the "deportation or forcible transfer of population".

“On behalf of the Armenian-Australian community, we thank Mr Jonathan O’Dea and Mr Walt Secord for joining many international political leaders, who seek to defend the human rights of the people of Nagorno Karabakh, by stopping Azerbaijan’s aggression against the self-determined Republic of Artsakh,” added Kolokossian.

“The autocratic regime of Azerbaijan has consistently proven that it will terrorise the indigenous Armenians of Artsakh. It has not returned Armenian POWs, it has not withdrawn from the sovereign borders of Armenia, it exacerbates the humanitarian crisis in the region by cutting off natural gas supplies between Artsakh and Armenia, and has now conducted aggressive military operations. These are actions of a criminal state, emboldened by the international community's silence and ‘both side-ist’ rhetoric, which this statement exposes as false and dangerous.”

Kolokossian added: “Australia must rightfully champion a different path, by publicly speaking out against Azerbaijan’s unprovoked aggressions and upholding the values of truth, justice and international law.”


With Russia distracted, its ally Armenia could suffer another defeat in Nagorno-Karabakh

Lara Antonian
Aug 10 2022
 By Nikola Mikovic

Russia continues to demonstrate its impotence in the global arena. Recent clashes between Armenia and Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh have clearly shown that the Kremlin will hardly be able to continue playing the role of a regional arbiter in the South Caucasus.

On August 3, clashes between Armenian forces and the Azerbaijani Army broke out near the strategically important Lachin Corridor in Nagorno-Karabakh. That tiny strip of land connects Nagorno-Karabakh – internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan, although it has been under Armenian control for almost 30 years – to Armenia through Azerbaijani-held territory. The Lachin Corridor, as well as other Armenian-controlled areas, has been under the supervision of Russian peacekeepers since 2020. They have been deployed there following the 44-day war that resulted in Azerbaijan’s victory. During the conflict, Baku managed to restore its sovereignty over significant portions of Nagorno-Karabakh, as well as surrounding areas. Some territories, however, including Lachin and Stepanakert, also known as as Khankendi – the de facto capital and the largest city of the self-proclaimed Armenia-backed Republic of Artsakh – remain under Armenian control to this day.

Although Yerevan recently announced that it will withdraw all remaining military units from Nagorno-Karabakh by September, Baku seems to be attempting to speed up the process and establish full control over the mountainous region as soon as possible. Russia, Armenia’s nominal ally in the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), has accused Azerbaijan of violating the 2020 ceasefire deal, which is something that Baku strongly denies. According to Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry, the reason for the recent tension is “the presence of illegal Armenian armed troops in the territories of Azerbaijan and provocations instigated by them”.

Despite the presence of the Russian troops, Azerbaijani Armed Forces have launched a counter operation and seized a number of important heights near the Lachin Corridor. Such an action has demonstrated that the Russian peacekeepers cannot prevent a potential large-scale conflict. Indeed, if another war in Nagorno-Karabakh eventually breaks out, some 2,000 Russian troops in the region will play the role of sitting ducks. Azerbaijani actions have shown that Baku, strongly backed by Turkey, Israel and Pakistan, does not seem to hesitate from a potential conflict with Russia. The Azeri leaders are quite aware that Moscow, preoccupied with its military fiasco in Ukraine, cannot fight two wars at the same time, and that the Kremlin will seek to avoid an escalation in the region by all means.

That is why Baku is expected to continue pressuring Yerevan to withdraw its troops from Nagorno-Karabakh. Sporadic local clashes could be a method of pressure, and it is entirely possible that Azerbaijani forces will soon seize more strategically important heights and villages. Armenia, on the other hand, cannot count on Moscow’s concrete support. If the situation in the region escalates, the Kremlin will almost certainly keep accusing Azerbaijan of violating the ceasefire deal and call on both sides to “keep restraint”. But Russian peacekeepers will be unlikely to take any practical steps to protect the local Armenians.

A new round of full-fledged hostilities will undoubtedly mark the end of the self-proclaimed Republic of Artsakh

Thus, a new round of full-fledged hostilities will undoubtedly mark the end of the self-proclaimed Republic of Artsakh. Under the current geopolitical circumstances Armenia may be able to delay, but not to prevent the return of Nagorno-Karabakh under Baku’s jurisdiction. As Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan recently stressed, questions arise in Armenian society over the Russian peacekeeping operation in Nagorno-Karabakh. In other words, Yerevan understands that Russia is not in a position to help Armenia, which is why Pashinyan said on August 4 that it is necessary to “endow the peacekeeping mission with a wider international mandate”. But since Azerbaijan has the upper hand over Armenia, it is extremely unlikely that Baku, unless seriously pressured by the West, will agree to internationalize the Karabakh conflict.

Pashinyan will, therefore, likely try to find a way to de facto give up Armenia’s aspirations over Nagorno-Karabakh, but at the same time to save face. Yerevan may also attempt to distance itself from the Kremlin and develop close ties with the West, hoping that such a flip-flop will help Armenia to preserve control over Artsakh (the Armenian name for Nagorno-Karabakh). However, given that energy-rich Azerbaijan recently signed a very important gas deal with the European Union, it is not very probable that the West will support Armenian ambitions in the region.

Accordingly, the Armenia-backed unrecognized Republic of Artsakh could prove to be a “collateral damage” of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The Kremlin, for its part, continues to struggle to preserve the South Caucasus in its geopolitical orbit, although developments on the ground indicate that neither Baku nor Yerevan see Moscow as the primary mediator in their disputes.

What has sparked the latest tensions in Nagorno-Karabakh?

Yeghisabet Vorskanian

Qatar – July 10 2022

Armenia and Azerbaijan trade blame for the recent clashes that violated a ceasefire over the Nagorno-Karabakh region.

By Thomas O Falk
Published On 10 Aug 2022

A ceasefire has been in force in the disputed South Caucasus region of Nagorno-Karabakh since 2020. The already fragile agreement was violated earlier this month, with the conflicting parties – Armenia and Azerbaijan – trading blame for the recent deadly clashes.

Since Azerbaijan regained control over much of the region through the 2020 war, Nagorno-Karabakh is connected to Armenia only via the so-called Lachin corridor.

Elmar Mustafayev, a political analyst and a Jean Monnet module coordinator at Khazar University, told Al Jazeera that Armenia recently attempted to break the terms of the trilateral agreement signed by leaders of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia that ended the 44-day war in November 2020.

“An Azerbaijani soldier was killed [earlier this month] as a result of a ceasefire violation by Armenian-backed forces. In response to provocations, Azerbaijan carried out tit-for-tat measures,” he said.

According to Azerbaijan, fire was opened on its military position in the district of Lachin, the very buffer zone between the Armenian border and Nagorno-Karabakh.

A soldier was reportedly killed in the process, prompting a military operation by Azerbaijan dubbed “Revenge”.

“The provisions of the trilateral agreement remain unfulfilled by Armenia,” Mustafayev said.

“The agreement envisaged the deployment of Russian peacekeeping forces in parallel with the withdrawal of Armenia’s forces as well as the disarmament of local illegal armed groups,” he said. “However, over the one year and eight months since the conclusion of the trilateral agreement, Armenia failed to meet the commitments on withdrawal and disarmament.”

He also said that another unfulfilled provision of the Russia-brokered deal is the construction of a new road connecting Armenia with Nagorno-Karabakh.

“The new corridor to replace the Lachin corridor, thus enabling Azerbaijan to take over the control of Lachin city, remains unfinished business. Although Azerbaijan has almost finalised the works on building the alternative corridor, the construction works on the Armenian part have not even started,” Mustafayev said.

“Similarly, Armenia acts in bad faith in providing the Zangezur corridor between Azerbaijan and the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, a landlocked exclave of Azerbaijan, in the same fashion Azerbaijan provides the corridor between Armenia and Karabakh,” he said.

However, Nagorno-Karabakh authorities accused Azerbaijan of violating an agreed ceasefire. Two pro-Armenian separatists were killed and 14 others injured in an Azerbaijani drone strike.

Khatchig Mouradian, lecturer in Middle Eastern, South Asian and African studies at Columbia University, told Al Jazeera that, “Yerevan is paralysed by defeat and failure in leadership, while Baku is capitalising on geopolitical tailwinds.

“It’s attacking because it can. In this calculus, it matters little that Armenia has announced it will complete the withdrawal of its forces by September, that it has begun the construction of the alternative road and that it is in no position to trigger Azerbaijan’s ire,” he said.

The Armenian foreign ministry called on the international community to stop Azerbaijan’s “aggressive actions”.

Russia also accused Azerbaijan of breaking the ceasefire. The Russian defence ministry announced “measures to stabilise the situation”.

In the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Armenia is supported by Russia while Azerbaijan is backed by Turkey.

“[Russian President Vladimir] Putin served as the godfather of the ceasefire agreement that ended the 40-day war, but Russian peacekeepers seem to be struggling to uphold even a negative peace,” Mouradian said.

“The war on Ukraine is casting a shadow on Nagorno-Karabakh, too. Russia’s announcement on August 3 that Azerbaijan was the side that violated the ceasefire may have been an implicit warning against testing Moscow’s ability to wage war in one place and keep the peace in another,” he said.

EU-brokered peace talks

The latest incidents could complicate the European Union-brokered peace talks that have been continuing between Azerbaijan and Armenia for several months.

Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev met in Brussels in April and May.

On Wednesday, the EU called on both sides to stop fighting immediately and return to the negotiating table.

However, the chances of a peace treaty between the two sides remain rather slim, unless the status quo changes.

“President Aliyev and his Armenian counterpart Prime Minister Pashinyan in their meeting brokered by European Council President Charles Michel, have agreed to set up a bilateral border demarcation commission and work on a peace agreement,” Mustafayev said.

“The agreement came after the proposal of Azerbaijan based on five main conditions made earlier in March. But facing strong pressure from opposition parties and the diaspora against reconciliation, Armenian officials issue contradictory statements on peace with Azerbaijan,” he added.

“Therefore, for the time being, it is not clear how long it will take to see the peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan.”

US ‘deeply concerned’

Meanwhile, the United States was also “deeply concerned” about the new escalation in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. State Department spokesman Ned Price urged “immediate steps” to ease tensions.

Currently, the chances of yet another war seem more plausible than a peace treaty, according to Mouradian.

“The likelihood of renewed war in Nagorno-Karabakh is high, and Russia seems to be the only actor capable of preventing it. While it is true that the United States and Europe are invested in the region’s stability, there is little that over-the-horizon peacekeeping can deliver,” he said.

The conflict itself is more than 30 years old. With the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, a dispute broke out over Nagorno-Karabakh, which unilaterally declared its independence.

With the declaration of independence of Armenia and Azerbaijan, both states claimed the approximately 12,000 square kilometres (4,633 square miles) of area for themselves.

However, according to international law, the area inhabited mainly by Armenians belongs to Azerbaijan.

In 1992, war broke out over the area, killing about 30,000 people and displacing hundreds of thousands over the next two years. The war ended in 1994 – provisionally with a victory for Armenia.

In 2020, Azerbaijan recaptured large areas of the region. At least 6,500 people died in the fighting, which lasted about six weeks.

Heavy fighting ended with the signing of a ceasefire in November 2020, controlled by Russia, but broken repeatedly since it was signed.

Karabakh authorities demand villagers quickly evacuate ahead of handover to Azerbaijan

Hagop Kamalian
Aug 10 2022

Ani Mejlumyan Aug 10, 2022

Following weeks of uncertainty about their fate, residents of three communities in Karabakh’s Lachin region have been told they need to leave their homes within 20 days as Azerbaijan prepares to retake control of the area.

Nagorno-Karabakh’s de facto Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure, Hayk Khanumyan, visited one of the affected villages, Aghavno, on August 5 and told residents that they should leave by August 25.

The handover comes as Azerbaijan is pressing Armenians to abandon the current road connecting Armenia with Nagorno-Karabakh and to instead use a new road. The three communities all lie along the old road.

Khanumyan “said that the Azerbaijanis will come and the Russians will leave [the current road] on August 25,” Mariam Hakobyan, an Aghavno resident, told RFE/RL’s Armenian Service. The order also affects two other communities, the village Sus and the town of Lachin.

The announcement was an abrupt change of tune from the Armenian authorities. At the end of June, the secretary of Armenia’s Security Council, Armen Grigoryan, told reporters after a cabinet meeting: "We still have time to find solutions both for the road and the residents. We still have approximately a year and a half.” That echoed earlier remarks from Karabakh’s human rights ombudsman.

The villages in question lie along the Lachin corridor, the road that links Nagorno-Karabakh to Armenia. According to the ceasefire agreement that ended the 2020 war between Armenia and Azerbaijan, the entire district of Lachin was supposed to be handed over to Azerbaijan on December 1, 2020, except for a five-kilometer buffer along the corridor road patrolled by Russian peacekeepers so that Armenians could continue to travel safely between Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia.

The truce accord also called for constructing a new Armenia-Karabakh road within three years. Azerbaijan has been constructing a road on the Karabakh side of the border and has been pushing Armenia to complete the section on its side of the border.

At the end of July, Armenian officials said they would begin that work in August. On August 2, Harutyunyan said that "the Azerbaijani side, via the peacekeepers, demanded to organize a shift to the new route as soon as possible." 

Harutyunyan’s remarks came as fighting broke out in the region just to the north of the current Lachin corridor. The escalation appeared at least in part to be an attempt by Azerbaijan to pressure Armenia to speed up the construction of the new road and the handover of the villages along the old one.

While the ceasefire statement does not say anything about the fate of civilians along the current Lachin corridor, Armenians do not feel secure remaining under Azerbaijani control and without protection from the Russian peacekeepers. In an August 5 statement, Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev said that the new road “was nearing completion and that Russian peacekeeping forces would be deployed on that road after its construction was completed.” He did not mention the fate of the people living along the old road.

Before the first war between the two sides in the 1990s, the area was populated by ethnic Azerbaijanis. After Armenians won control of the territory in that war, they settled the area with Armenians, some from Armenia itself and others from Armenian diaspora communities in Syria and Lebanon.

Now, those residents say they will follow the government’s orders. "What should they [residents] do? They have no other choice. Let them all die, for what?” asked the mayor of Aghavno, 

Andranik Chavushyan, in an interview with news website aravot.am, said, “The state must protect its compatriots; if it doesn't, what should the residents do?"

About 200 people now live in the affected areas, and Aghavno residents said they were confused and disappointed. "We will probably take the children out [of Aghavno], but the adults will stay until the last day, the last hour. Let's see how they execute the handover," one resident, Anush Arakelyan, told RFE/RL.

The Karabakh government is offering a voucher for 10 million Armenian drams ($25,000) to each household in the three communities to find a new home somewhere else.

Officials in Yerevan and Stepanakert have not publicly commented on the planned evacuation. It’s also not clear how traffic between Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh will run if the existing Lachin corridor is handed over to Azerbaijan by the end of this month.

On top of the evacuation of residents, the Karabakh authorities are trying to remove more than four dozen monuments from the area, mostly from the last 30 years and dedicated to the wars with Azerbaijan.

"I consider it a mistake because we are erasing the tracks (of Armenian’s presence) with our own hands," Lusine Gharakhanyan, an adviser to the Nagorno Karabakh de facto leader, told RFE/RL on August 8. But authorities in Karabakh also fear the destruction of the monuments if those remain under Azerbaijani control, she said. 

With additional research by Heydar Isayev.

Ani Mejlumyan is a reporter based in Yerevan.

Poor challenge from Aliyev! He met with Turkish-Cypriot occupation leader in Turkey

Emil Lazarian
Aug 10 2022

by ATHENS BUREAU

The  leader of the Turkish occupation of northern Cyprus, Ersin Tatar, met with the genocidal dictator of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, in Ikónion (Ἰκόνιον, Turkish: Konya), Turkey.

According to the Turkish-Cypriot leader’s written statement, Tatar traveled to Ikónion to attend the Opening Ceremony of the 5th Islamic Solidarity at the invitation of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

Tatar had a meeting with Aliyev, which lasted about 40 minutes. During the meeting, Tatar informed Aliyev about Cyprus and said that they follow a harmonious policy with Turkey.

Noting that the meeting took place in a very frank atmosphere, Tatar emphasised that assessments were made on the development of mutual relations between the two countries.

Simply put, the dictator, murderous and corrupt Aliyev, legitimised the pseudo-state.

Time for Greece to finally sanction this murderer, who has seared Western consciences by handing out at least three billion dollars in bribes to Western politicians and officials, according to News Break.