By Usman Khan Khalil, The Orient News Research Section

The history and roots of “Nagorno-Karabakh” an ethnic and territorial land dispute” trace back more than seven decades before between Azerbaijan and Armenia, an area inhabited by both ethnic Armenians and Azerbaijanis population. The conflict mainly started when the seven surrounding districts, inhabited mostly by Azerbaijanis were occupied in the past by Armenia, illegally which led to the expulsion of Azerbaijanis from the area during the first Nagorno-Karabakh War in 1950 -1951. The area is internationally recognized as “de jure part” of Azerbaijan.

Inter-ethnic clashes between the two sides broke out shortly after the parliament of the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast (NKAO) in Azerbaijan voted to unify the region with Armenia on 20 February 1988. The crisis erupted, when the Karabakh Armenians demanded that Karabakh be transferred from Soviet Azerbaijan to Soviet Armenia. The conflict triggered off into a full-scale war in the early 1990s. As Azerbaijan declared its independence from the Soviet Union, the Armenian majority voted to secede from Azerbaijan. In the process they proclaimed the unrecognized Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh.

The war broke out between both sides in the late winter of 1992.By the end of the war in 1994, the Armenians were in full control of most of the enclave and also held the control approximately 9% of Azerbaijan's territory outside the enclave. During the war, "Russia was widely considered as the main supporter of the Armenia. Much of this perception stemmed from the fact that Russia transferred military support to Armenia. “It is on the record that Russian forces indirectly supported the Armenian side by "supplying arms, fuel and logistical support." Russia supplied around $1 billion worth of weapons and, thus, "made a significant contribution to the Armenian victory.” According to de Waal, "greater Russian support for the Armenians" was one of the main factors behind the Armenian victory. 

In the post-war period, Russia is the Armenia’s main arms supplier and the two countries are military allies. At the same time, Armenia buys Russian weaponry at a discount, while Azerbaijan pays the full price which also shows the mindset of Russian government. In contrast of it Turkey is widely considered Azerbaijan's main supporter in the conflict. Turkey is the "only country that constantly expressed its wide support for Azerbaijan.” It provided Azerbaijan "active military help" during the war. Turkey also supports Azerbaijan diplomatically. Turkish and Azerbaijani armed forces cooperate extensively and regularly hold military exercises. Azerbaijan has also bought weapons from Turkey.

Turkey closed its border with Armenia in April 1993 after Armenian forces captured Kalbajar. Turkey has repeatedly refused to normalize and establish diplomatic relations with Armenia in solidarity with Azerbaijan over Karabakh.

Several foreign groups fought on both sides in the intense period of fighting in 1992–94. According to Human Rights Watch (HRW), both sides used mercenaries during the war, namely "Russian, Ukrainian, and Belorussian mercenaries or rogue units of the Soviet/Russian Army.

Azerbaijan has received a tremendous and massive diplomatic support, for its territorial integrity, from three post-Soviet states that have territorial disputes: Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova. These three countries and Azerbaijan form the GUAM organization and support the Azerbaijani position fully. Serbia, with its own territorial dispute over Kosovo, also explicitly supports Azerbaijan's territorial integrity.

The two other post-Soviet states, Kazakhstan and Belarus tacitly support Azerbaijan's position, particularly within the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) and the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), despite nominal alliance with Armenia. On 14 March 2008 the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution which "reaffirmed Azerbaijan's territorial integrity, expressing support for that country's internationally recognized borders and demanding the immediate withdrawal of all Armenian forces from all occupied territories there." It was adopted by a vote of 39 in favor to 7 against, while most countries either abstained or were absent. It was backed significantly, mostly by Muslim states (31 were members of the OIC including Pakistan). Non-Muslim states that supported the resolution included three post-Soviet states: Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine, and five other nations: Cambodia, Colombia, Myanmar, Serbia, and Tuvalu. Thus, it was supported by seven OSCE members; one NATO member (Turkey) and no EU member state. It was opposed by Angola, Armenia, France, India, Russia, United States, Vanuatu.

The latest Clashes began on the morning of 27 September 2020 along the “Nagorno-Karabakh” line of contact which had been established in the aftermath of the war between “Nagorno-Karabakh “1988–1994). The latest round of last month war was marked by the deployment of drones, sensors, long-range heavy artillery and missile strikes, as well as by state propaganda and the use of official social media accounts in online information warfare. Total casualties on both sides are more than4,000 people were killed, 2,000 from each side. The total number of reported civilian casualties on the two sides is at least 140 who died in and around “Nagorno-Karabakh”,  an enclave internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan but populated and controlled by ethnic Armenians backed by Armenia. Numerous countries and the United Nations strongly condemned the fighting and called on both sides to de-escalate tensions.

 As the dust settles, the end result is that “the Azerbaijan brave people” appears to be the clear winners, while Armenia has suffered a severe and bitter defeat. The 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war was an armed climax between Azerbaijan and Armenia. The Armenians steadily lost territory and Azerbaijani forces took over Shusha. Soldiers have hoisted the Azerbaijani flag in the final district given up by Armenia under a peace deal that ended weeks of fighting over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region.

A convoy of Azerbaijani military trucks entered the Lachin district overnight, taking over the last of three regions around Karabakh handed over by Armenia under the Russian-brokered agreement.

Following the capture of Shusha, the second-largest settlement in Nagorno-Karabakh, a ceasefire agreement was signed between the President of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, the Prime Minister of Armenia, Nikol Pashinyan, and the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, ending all hostilities in the area from 00:00, 10 November 2020, Moscow time. 

The President of Artsakh, Arayik Harutyunyan, also agreed to end the hostilities. Under the agreement, the warring sides will keep control of their currently held areas within Nagorno-Karabakh, while Armenia will return the surrounding territories it occupied in 1994 to Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan will also get its land    access bordering Turkey and Iran namely, Nakhichevan exclave. Approximately 2,000 Russian soldiers will be deployed as peacekeeping forces along the Lachin corridor between Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh for a mandate of at least five years. keeping in view all these aspects, it is the prime responsibility of international players to play its due role in the ambit of untied resolutions to solve this grave issue permanently in order to bring peace and harmony the world at large.