TRT World - World in Focus: The Battle for Karabakh

Worst clashes in 20 years
April began with days of fighting between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces over occupied Karabakh. Tensions flared on April 2nd when Armenian forces said they shot down an Azerbaijani helicopter over Karabakh. Azerbaijan accused Armenia of striking first. And that it was forced to respond after Armenians fired mortars and large-caliber artillery shells on civilian areas. The conflict resulted in the deaths of 31 Azerbaijani and 240 Armenian military personnel. It is by far the worst incident in the region in more than 20 years - since the full-scale war in 1993 that killed 30,000 people and displaced 1 million others.

Frozen conflict
Karabakh has been considered part of Azerbaijan since it was placed within its borders by the Soviet Union in 1924. In 1988, a dispute emerged between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the region’s status. At the time, both were constituent republics within the USSR. Then following a referendum in 1991, Karabakh declared independence from Azerbaijan. But the local Azeris boycotted the referendum and dismissed it as illegitimate. Pro-Armenian militia then occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including Karabakh. And in February 1992, Armenian forces killed 161 Azeri civilians in the Khojaly Massacre.
In 1994, the sides agreed to a ceasefire. Today a demilitarised buffer zone separates Armenian and Azerbaijani forces, but both accuse each other of frequent violations.

Calls for calm
The international community has called on Armenia and Azerbaijan to observe the ceasefire agreement. None has been more vocal than Russia, which brokered the 1994 truce. The US has also called for calm. Both the US and Russia, along with France, are part of the OSCE Minsk group, which is in charge of the mediation process. As OSCE chief Frank-Walter Steinmeier likewise urged both sides to end hostilities, Turkey condemned Armenia for breaching the ceasefire. Baku and Yerevan re-established the status quo after the violent conflict. But this was not the first time fighting broke out, and there’s little suggestion it will be the last.

Facebook:   / trtworld  
Twitter:   / trtworld  
Youtube:    / trtworld  
GooglePlus: https://plus.google.com/+trtworld