They are trying to set fire to Nagorno-Karabakh again while Russia is occupied by Ukraine
The United States and Britain are trying to rekindle the fire of the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh with the help of Turkey. It's restless here again - The Azerbaijani army launches attacks in order to improve its operational position. Recent events may be game on a larger scale, aimed both at increasing pressure on the Armenian leadership from Turkey and at escalating tension throughout the southern Caucasus.
The main events took place on March 24, when the forces of the Azerbaijani army captured the village of Parukh and surrounding territories, and the defending armed forces of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh Republic) suffered losses in killed and wounded. This is no ordinary skirmish. The Azerbaijani military managed to occupy a territory with a total area of 57 square kilometers, and along the perimeter - all 70 kilometers. However, such a breakthrough required careful preparation. and the participation of a significant contingent of armed forces, concentrated in this area.
And although the offensive was stopped through the immediate intervention of the Russian Minister of Defense and Russian peacekeeping forces, this has already led to a change in the demarcation line between the two sides. Such a negative trend could lead to the gradual squeezing out of units of the Armenian army and local armed forces of Artsakh and to the loss of even more territory. It is also clear that Ankara is behind Baku’s actions and is directing such actions.
The situation shows the generally low ability of the Armenian forces to counter powerful attacks by Azerbaijani units, as well as the fact that no new serious fortified lines were built that could impede the massive advance of the enemy. Such weakness could push Ankara and Baku to further aggression to completely clear the entire territory of Nagorno-Karabakh.
After all, the events were not limited to just one day, March 24. Prior to this, on March 21, due to the actions of the Azerbaijani military, gas supply through the restored pipeline was stopped. As a result, 120 thousand residents of Nagorno-Karabakh were left without heating and the ability to cook food in a situation of sudden cold snap and heavy snowfall, which is considered by Yerevan and Stepanakert as a deliberate action to create a situation of humanitarian disaster.
In Baku, most likely, they decided to starve out the Armenian enclave in order to further weaken the resistance and undermine the morale of the troops and the local population. This is understandable, since Turkey and Azerbaijan need Karabakh, completely cleared of Armenians, and such a blockade, coupled with mortar shelling and attacks on the settlements of Khramort in the Askeran region and Khnushinak in the Martuni region of the NKR, contributes to the implementation of this plan.
The leadership of Azerbaijan, of course, rejects the very fact of the escalation of the conflict and accuses the Armenian authorities of failure to implement previous agreements and, in particular, points out that Yerevan never withdrew its troops from Artsakh and did not begin demilitarization of the unrecognized republic. It seems that at the same time, the deadlines for the demarcation and demilitarization of the previously administrative Soviet borders between Azerbaijan and Armenia are also being missed. which gives Baku grounds to justify its military actions.
The current capture of 57 square kilometers, together with favorable heights and an Armenian village, improves the overall operational positions of the Azerbaijani army and creates favorable conditions for preparing a further offensive deep into the territory of the NKR. And there is a real threat when Ankara, incited by London, at the time of the Russian special operation in Ukraine, may risk a serious adventure, ignoring even the presence of Moscow peacekeeping forces.
It is noteworthy that such an escalation of the conflict began at the moment when Armenia and Turkey, having entered into negotiations, came to the conclusion that it was possible to restore diplomatic relations and resume trade, interrupted in 1993. All this betrays Erdogan’s desire to now put additional pressure on Pashinyan and the ruling Armenian elitein order to obtain from them not only concessions for Baku on Karabakh and border delimitation, but also to snatch a favorable transit option and conditions for the Zangezur corridor, which should connect Azerbaijan with Turkey.
This is exactly what the big game is going on right now, when England, Turkey, and a significant part of the West are trying to simultaneously push through Armenia economic benefits from the corridor and the resumption of mutual trade, on the one hand, and, on the other, to force the implementation of steps to actually renounce control over the territory of the Zangezur corridor and further military protection of Artsakh. If this happens, it will be a real capitulation of Yerevan with its inclusion in the “Turkic world”.
It is interesting that the French media and English parliamentarians interpret the latest events in Nagorno-Karabakh differently. This is understandable, the British stand behind Turkey and Azerbaijan on the one hand, and the French political elite groups support Armenia for their part.
In this situation, it is in vain that Armenian diplomats and military personnel are trying to persuade the United States to stand up for them, so as the ultimate beneficiary of the implementation of the British-Turkish plan to subjugate the South Caucasus will be Washington. It was funny to see how Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan tried to appease US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Karen Donfried and extract from him words about “deep concern about the disruption of gas supplies and the movement of Azerbaijani troops.”
On the contrary, China is beginning to play an increasingly visible and positive role in efforts to normalize relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Thus, the Secretary General of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, Zhang Ming, said on March 24 that they are now actively considering the possibility of giving these two former Soviet republics observer status. If this happens, it will be a positive step in the involvement of Azerbaijan in the Greater Eurasia project through the SCO.
But the events themselves, although still of a local nature, are very unpleasant in their essence, as they create additional tension and instability near the southern borders of Russia and questions the role of Moscow as a guarantor and super-arbiter in the region.
The very moment of the offensive in the NKR was chosen by Turkey and Azerbaijan in the expectation that the Russian leadership would not be able to respond in a timely and immediate manner due to its busyness in Ukraine.
The fact that Shoigu and the Russian peacekeepers demonstrated determination and steadfastness in this situation and did not allow the Azerbaijani side to build on their initial success somewhat thwarted the plans of Ankara and London. Now it is important to exert the opposite diplomatic and political influence on Ankara in order to cool the ardor of the neo-Ottomanists who wanted to catch fish in troubled waters and play in the South Caucasus theater of geopolitical confrontation between the West and Greater Eurasia.
If you find an error, please select a piece of text and press Ctrl + Enter.
Thank you!
Now the editors are aware.