After a ceasefire in Nagorno-Karabakh
Thousands of Armenians flock to the airport
September 20, 2023, 5:47 p.m
After Azerbaijan’s major offensive in Nagorno-Karabakh and the recently agreed ceasefire, thousands of affected Armenians are flocking to Stepanakert Airport. Troops of the Russian Protective Force are stationed there. The international community is now trying to find a diplomatic solution.
Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has called on Russia and Azerbaijan to make efforts to find a diplomatic solution to the conflict following the ceasefire in Nagorno-Karabakh. “Azerbaijan and Russia in particular must ensure that people are safe in their own homes,” said the Green politician on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York. “There can only be a diplomatic solution” – this is what the EU and the Federal Government were intensively committed to, including on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly.
Around three years after the most recent war between the two hostile ex-Soviet republics, Azerbaijan launched a military operation yesterday, Tuesday, to conquer the region, which is on Azerbaijani soil but is predominantly inhabited by Armenians. According to Armenian information, more than 30 people have died so far and more than 200 others have been injured. Today, Wednesday, both sides agreed to a ceasefire – on the condition that the Armenian fighters give up their resistance. Russia is traditionally considered Armenia’s protecting power.
Meanwhile, this self-declared submission of the separatists in Nagorno-Karabakh to the central government of Azerbaijan has caused unrest among the region’s Armenian population. After the ceasefire was announced, thousands of people went to the airport in the regional capital Stepanakert, where Russian peacekeepers are stationed.
The separatist leadership called on the population to remain calm and refrain from attempting to leave the country via the airport. According to the agreement, talks about the future of the approximately 120,000 ethnic Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh are scheduled to begin tomorrow, Thursday. It was initially unclear whether they would come to terms with the central government in Baku or whether large parts of the population would emigrate to Armenia.
Armenia had accused Azerbaijan of attempting “ethnic cleansing,” which the government in Baku has rejected. Both the predominantly Christian Armenians and the predominantly Muslim Azerbaijanis cite historical claims in Nagorno-Karabakh.