Armenia, a new dividing line between Paris and Moscow. Vladimir Putin and his Azerbaijani counterpart, Ilham Aliyev, strongly denounced, on Friday, October 14, remarks by Emmanuel Macron, who this week accused the first of seeking to destabilize the Caucasus, and the second of having attacked Armenia.
Russia, bogged down in its offensive in Ukraine, has lost influence in recent months in the mediation process between Armenia and Azerbaijan, to the benefit of the West, in a region where Moscow has historically served as arbiter.
During an interview on France 2 on Wednesday, Emmanuel Macron affirmed that Moscow had “played the game of Azerbaijan with Turkish complicity” during the 2020 conflict between Baku and Yerevan for control of the Nagorno-Karabakh enclave. “It is a destabilization maneuver by Russia which, in the Caucasus, seeks to create disorder to weaken and divide us all”developed the Head of State.
Azerbaijani president denounces “insulting, unacceptable, false” statements
He also asserted that France “would never let go” the Armenians and that Azerbaijan had launched in 2020 “a terrible war” in Nagorno-Karabakh, as well as “offensives” in September at the official border between the two countries. His words were swept away with one voice on Friday by Vladimir Putin and Ilham Aliyev.
“I think that there is a lack of understanding of the course of the conflict in these statements, and visibly, of information from France on the position of the parties”reacted the Russian president during a summit of the countries of the former USSR in Astana, Kazakhstan, judging the words of Mr. Macron “incorrect” and “unacceptable”.
Also present in Astana, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev vilified statements “insulting, unacceptable, misleading”. “We no longer see any possibility (…) for France to play any role in the normalization of Azerbaijani-Armenian relations”, he blurted out. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan from Astana said that Azerbaijan has “the intention to occupy more Armenian territories”.
Several diplomatic channels
This new volley of reproaches could further undermine efforts to find a peace treaty between these two former Soviet republics in the Caucasus. On October 6, in Prague, negotiations had nevertheless taken place between Nikol Pashinian, Ilham Aliev, Emmanuel Macron and the President of the European Council, Charles Michel. The European Union (EU) then announced a “civil mission” in Armenia to help demarcate the border between the two countries.
The heads of Armenian and Azerbaijani diplomacy also met in Geneva on October 2, after American and European mediation, to start working on a draft peace treaty. On Friday, Vladimir Putin said he will discuss the subject again with the French president. ” if the opportunity arises “. He also invited Nikol Pashinian and Ilham Aliev to meet in Russia.
At the same time, the head of Russian diplomacy, Sergei Lavrov, and his Armenian and Azerbaijani counterparts, Ararat Mirzoian and Djeyhoun Baïramov, met the same day in Astana for negotiations.
At least 286 dead in September
Armenia, an ally of Russia, and Azerbaijan, backed by Turkey, have clashed in two wars over the past three decades for control of Nagorno-Karabakh, an Armenian-majority enclave. The last war, in the fall of 2020, left 6,500 dead and ended with a ceasefire mediated by Moscow, which deployed a contingent of peacekeepers on the spot.
In recent months, the EU and the United States have taken the lead in talks to negotiate a peace treaty, while Russia is monopolized by its intervention in Ukraine. Despite these attempts at mediation, the situation remains unstable. In September, at least 286 people were killed in fresh clashes on the Armenia-Azerbaijan border, raising fears of another major war.