The Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict
Nagorno-Karabakh declared itself an independent republic in 1992, yet this de facto status hasn’t been officially recognised elsewhere. Azerbaijan has aspired to regain control of the Nagorno-Karabakh territory which has always enjoyed close military and ethnic ties with Armenia.
Small and mountainous, the disputed enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh, also known as the Artsakh secessionist state, is situated in southwestern Azerbaijan with Armenia to the west and Iran to the south. It is of highly symbolic importance to both Azerbaijan and Armenia. For Armenians it symbolises freedom and self determination as it was the only independent Armenian populated territory when Armenia was under Iranian rule in the 6th century AD. At the same time Karabakh occupies a special place in Azerbaijanis national consciousness as it was a major Azerbaijani cultural center in the 19th century.
After the fall of the Soviet Union, Azerbaijan and Armenia gained their independence, but the Nagorno-Karabakh region became a bone of contention. Karabakh was mainly populated by Armenian Christians but during Stalin’s rule it was given to Azerbaijan.
When the predominantly Armenian population of Nagorno-Karabakh wanted to break away and become independent, Armenia sent troops in order to dislocate Azerbaijan people from the area. In the early nineties, the conflict escalated and a full scale war broke out which created hundreds of thousands of refugees and internally displaced people on both sides. During the 5 year war, in which an estimated 20,000 to 30,000 people lost their lives, the ethnic Armenians gained control of the area and proclaimed independence.
During the Soviet times Karabakh was an area under Muslim control but now the only people in Nagorno-Karabakh are Christian Karabakheans. In Azerbaijan the anniversary of the country’s war with Armenian forces is still commemorated and refugee Karabakh Azeris yearn for return. At the same time Armenians might have won the most recent conflict and, given the degree to which they suffered through successive occupations, they steadfastly refuse to broker a peace with Azerbaijan which could include any political compromise.
Today, as in most of the post-Soviet conflicts, there is no war in Karabakh, but also no peace. The issue still remains open with both sides fearing a new conflict and preparing for a possible war.
