The self-proclaimed breakaway republic of Nagorno-Karabakh spectacularly announced on Thursday its dissolution on January 1, 2024, more than 30 years after its creation and a week after a victorious offensive by Azerbaijan that forced more than half of the population to flee. .
The leader of the enclave Samvel Chakhramanian announced by decree the dissolution “of all government institutions (…) on January 1, 2024” and that, as a result, “the Nagorno Karabakh Republic” ceased “to exist.”
This predominantly Armenian region, which split from Azerbaijan after the breakup of the USSR, opposed Baku for more than three decades, notably during two wars between 1988 and 1994 and in the fall of 2020.
However, last week Azerbaijan launched a military offensive to retake it and pushed the separatists to capitulate within 24 hours, without the intervention of either Armenia or the Russian peacekeepers deployed there since the end of 2020.
“It is painful”
Yerevan, whose military resources are weakened, felt abandoned by its great Russian ally. In response, the Armenian Parliament put on the agenda next Tuesday the vote to ratify the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC), which had issued an arrest warrant against Russian President Vladimir Putin in the spring.
An “extremely hostile” project according to the Kremlin, which limited itself on Thursday to “taking note” of the announcement of the historic self-dissolution.
Tens of thousands of Armenians fled for fear of reprisals through the only road linking Nagorno-Karabakh with Armenia, reopened on Sunday by Baku after months of blockade.
Lilit Grigorian, a 32-year-old teacher, was waiting in Goris, an Armenian town near the border, with her son on Thursday. She would like to rent an apartment, but she knows it will be difficult for her to find a place to live.
“We’re not even discussing a return,” he said. “If Azerbaijan is capable of massacring a baby, how can we live with them?” she asks. Speaking of the dissolution, he explains that “it is painful: our whole life has been reduced to dust.”
Many displaced
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian accused Azerbaijan of carrying out “ethnic cleansing” and estimated that there will be no more Armenians in the enclave “in the coming days.”
Armenian authorities reported on Thursday the arrival of more than 68,000 displaced people, or more than half of Nagorno Kabarakh’s official population of about 120,000, but the Armenian government has so far only been able to accommodate 2,850 people. which portends a humanitarian crisis. .
“Armenia lacks resources and will not be able to do it without help from abroad,” said political analyst Boris Navasardyan.
The capital, Yerevan, has been shaken in recent days by a series of demonstrations against the prime minister, accused of passivity towards Azerbaijan. As for Moscow, the Kremlin says it sees “no reason” for Armenians to flee.
“Guaranteed” rights
To those who decided to stay there, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliev certainly promised “guaranteed” rights. Azerbaijani authorities have even promised to allow rebels who surrender their weapons to leave.
However, billionaire Rouben Vardanian, who led the enclave’s separatist government from November 2022 to February 2023, was arrested on Wednesday as he attempted to reach Armenia.
According to Azerbaijan’s state security service, he was charged with financing terrorism and creating an illegal armed organization and was held in pre-trial detention for four months, causing concern in Yerevan.
The region’s former foreign affairs official, David Babahian, said he had also been added to Baku’s “blacklist” and agreed to surrender.
In his decree dissolving the self-proclaimed republic, the separatist leader stressed on Thursday that once the conditions of return are known, residents and refugees will be able to “individually make their decision.”
But a group of exiles discussing the latest news from the Armenian side identified the main dilemma facing those who accept to live under Azerbaijani control.
“If you have a son, he will have to serve in the Azerbaijani army, against Armenia,” a man who requested anonymity for security reasons told his friends. Only a fool would want that!
Source: BFM TV
