Introduction
Since the break-up of the Soviet Union, two of its former satellites – Armenia and Azerbaijan – have been at odds with each other over a small region located within Azerbaijan. Nagorno-Karabakh is an enclave within Azerbaijan’s borders, but it is home to a population that is predominantly ethnic Armenian. Several wars have been fought over the region, with the most recent occurring in September of 2020. However, the conflict dates back centuries, with its roots lying in the Persian, Russian, and Ottoman Empires. Ethnic tension and fierce nationalism have long rendered Nagorno-Karabakh into a powder keg, with an extended history of religious violence and conflict over its status.
Historical Background of the Conflict
Historically, Nagorno-Karabakh was predominantly populated by ethnic Armenians, in addition to nomadic Turkic peoples. At different points in history, it has been under the control of Armenian kingdoms, the Persian and Ottoman Empires, and Russia. Christian Armenians native to Nagorno-Karabakh frequently sided against invading Muslim dynasties, which laid the foundations for centuries of violence. Much of the violence occurring in Nagorno-Karabakh today has roots in the ethnic violence that was commonplace in the region for centuries. At its core, the conflict can be defined by the struggle for self-determination by the people of Nagorno-Karabakh, and the subsequent conflicts that ensued.
The region’s Armenian roots date back to 387 AD, when it was partitioned between the Roman and Persian Empires after a protracted war. What is known today as Nagorno-Karabakh was absorbed into the neighboring state of Caucasian Albania with whom it shared ethnic characteristics. In the centuries that followed, the region was invaded several times by different Muslim empires, including the Ottoman Empire and others. Despite these invasions, Nagorno-Karabakh, then called the Principality of Khachen, remained semi-autonomous with several small Armenian princedoms encompassing the territory that belonged de jure to the Persian Empire. The princedoms, known as “melikdoms,” functioned until the early 1720s.
The next chapter in the history of Nagorno-Karabakh is the fallout from the Russian and Ottoman invasion of the Persian Empire in 1724. Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh were encouraged by the Russian invaders to side with them against the Ottomans due to ethnic and religious similarities. However, after the Russian empire conquered several towns in what is present-day Azerbaijan, they encouraged Armenians to relocate there and fall under Russian control, instead of forming an independent state. This was rejected by the princedoms encompassing Nagorno-Karabakh, and the region fell under the control of the Ottoman Empire and was renamed the “Karabakh Khanate” in the mid-1700s. Despite the princedoms in Nagorno-Karabakh being misled by the Russians during the war, many of the Armenians viewed the Christian Russian Empire favorably in comparison to the Muslim Ottomans. The Karabakh Khanate was subsequently absorbed into Russia, first as a vassal state in 1805, before being dissolved completely into the Russian Empire in 1823.
Also playing a major role in the history of Nagorno-Karabakh are the ethnic cleansing campaigns perpetrated by both sides in the years between 1905 and 1917. In 1905, with the Russian Empire in chaos due to the Russian Revolution, ethnic clashes in Armenia and Azerbaijan which had been simmering for years were left unpoliced, and this eventually resulted in mass killings of Azerbaijanis. Some Armenians believed that independence could be secured as the Russian Empire collapsed, and attacked Azerbaijanis across the region in an effort to rid Muslims from the territory. At this time, the Russian Empire was in control of the entire region where present-day Armenia and Azerbaijan are. The Ottomans, which had traditionally protected Muslims in the region, had been pushed back which meant their influence was unable to stop the attacks. Russia has been blamed for not doing enough to stop the ethnic violence in territory under its control during this period.
In late 1914, the Ottoman Empire entered World War I as a German ally. One of its first acts as a belligerent was to try and capture Baku from Russia in an effort to expel the Russians from the Caucasus. The Ottomans were soundly defeated, and Christian Armenians in the region were accused of siding with Russia to undermine the Ottoman war effort. In reprisal, millions of Armenians were subjected to extrajudicial executions, forced death marches, and deportations. As the modern-day descendent of the Ottoman Empire, Turkey has been an apologist for the genocide, arguing that the Ottomans were under siege from all sides by Russian satellite forces, and that the mass destruction of the Armenian population was not a targeted campaign against a particular ethnic group, and rather it was the desperate attempts of a dying empire trying to cling to power. Regardless, the genocide further exacerbated the ethnic tension in the region, and continued the historic precedent of religious violence.
Following the Russian Revolution and subsequent departure of Russian troops from the Caucasus, Armenia and Azerbaijan both declared their independence in the years between 1918 and 1920. A referendum in Nagorno-Karabakh held at the time voted overwhelmingly to join Armenia over Azerbaijan, with roughly 94% of the population being ethnic Armenian. After the newly established Soviet Union took control of both Armenia and Azerbaijan, it was thought that Joseph Stalin would allow Nagorno-Karabakh to formally be adopted by Armenia in an attempt to guarantee Armenian support for Soviet rule. However, in an effort to cool Russo-Turkish relations which were strained because of clashes between the Ottomans and Russian Empire, Stalin incorporated Nagorno-Karabakh into Soviet Azerbaijan to appease Turkish concerns over a strong Armenian state. The region was also given a degree of autonomy, named the “Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast,” and had its borders drawn separately to Azerbaijan’s. Despite Armenian outrage over the decision to award Nagorno-Karabakh to Azerbaijan, the conflict was largely quiet during the Soviet era, with Moscow intolerant of ethnic nationalism. However, it flared up again when the Soviet Union began to dissolve in the late 1980s.
The modern conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan in Nagorno-Karabakh dates back to the late 1980s and early 1990s, as the Soviet Union began to collapse. The contention regarding Nagorno-Karabakh became a major issue around that time due to uncertainty and disagreement about whether or not the region would come under the control of the newly established Republic of Azerbaijan. In a referendum boycotted by the Azerbaijani population of Nagorno-Karabakh, ethnic Armenians in the territory chose to officially declare independence, sparking a war between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces. That conflict ended in an uneasy ceasefire in 1994, but left the region’s official status unresolved – paving the way for future confrontations and provocations. Following the war during the early 1990s, the enclave was internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan, but had been controlled by ethnic Armenians since it controversially declared independence in 1991. As a result, the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh remained de facto independent but internationally unrecognized, with the global community viewing it as a part of Azerbaijan.
In the aftermath of the First Nagorno-Karabakh War of the mid 1990s, the contested status of Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia’s continued presence there left the door open for potential future conflict. Even following the implementation of the ceasefire, Armenian forces maintained control over a significant amount of Azerbaijani territory around the enclave. This, coupled with the Armenian government’s support of the rogue Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh, has stoked tensions during recent years and occasionally led to Azerbaijan and Armenia accusing each other of provocations – resulting in armed conflict. The repercussions of Armenian forces remaining in Azerbaijani territory have had an adverse effect on the prospects for tranquility regarding the ongoing dispute and as such, multiple United Nations resolutions have advocated for their withdrawal as a necessary step to ensure lasting peace. The absence of this key element has undoubtedly contributed to repeated confrontations between Armenia and Azerbaijan in the years since the end of the First Nagorno-Karabakh War, and left the two countries susceptible to the type of serious escalation which transpired in the final months of 2020.
Outside of Armenia and Azerbaijan, major regional actors like Russia and Iran have played a role in Nagorno-Karabakh as well. Russia, for example, has historically styled itself as a mediating force however it also has a mutual defense pact with Armenia – which further complicates its involvement and the situation as a whole. Additionally, Russia is an arms supplier to both Azerbaijan and Armenia, a factor that can have a detrimental and exacerbating impact on the perpetuation of any armed conflict. Russia has sought to expand its role in Nagorno-Karabakh as the chief ceasefire negotiator, and in doing so, has allowed itself to maintain a presence there through the deployment of peacekeeping troops.
With respect to Iran, the ruling regime in Tehran has cultivated strong trade ties with Armenia since the early 1990s. Furthermore, while Iran often publicly declares its support for UN resolutions that call for Armenian withdrawal from occupied Azerbaijani territory, some analysts contend that the political establishment there discreetly backs Armenia as a counter-measure to minimize Azeri aspirations in Iran and across the region. Iran has a significant population, particularly in the north of the country, of Azeri descent and as such the Iranian regime views Azeri gains in the region as a legitimate political threat to its grip on power. For many members of the Iranian political establishment, the fear is that a more influential and powerful Azerbaijan might inspire that segment of its citizenry to stand up to the regime and cause upheaval.
Human Rights Violations During the Conflict
Over the course of its history, the region has been home to several ethnic cleansing and genocidal campaigns, and human rights abuses have carried into the modern era. Dating back to the pogroms against Azerbaijanis in 1905, and then the Armenian Genocide in 1914, mass ethnic killings are commonplace in the region. Contemporarily, the most recent conflicts in the region have seen grave human rights violations being committed by both sides. These clashes are rooted in their historical counterparts in a region familiar with violence.
Throughout the duration of the most recent conflict, both Armenia and Azerbaijan have been accused of committing war crimes and human rights violations. Both sides engaged in the ill-treatment of prisoners, extra-judicial killings, and attacks on civilians. Several organizations, including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, have called on the governments of both Armenia and Azerbaijan to investigate the abuses committed by their forces. Armenia is alleged to have indiscriminately fired rockets on multiple occasions which hit populated areas in several Azerbaijani towns and villages, including Barda, Ganja, and Tartar. The attacks were carried out in areas where there were no military targets and caused significant civilian casualties, damaged infrastructure, and resulted in mass displacement. In Ganja for example, Armenian forces used ballistic missiles and rocket artillery which hit residential neighborhoods three different times in October of 2020, killing and injuring dozens of civilians. Azerbaijan is accused of using its drone fleet to strike civilian targets as well, leading to further deaths and displacement. Lastly, both sides are still holding prisoners, which has led to concerns over the ongoing ill-treatment of these individuals.
Some of the gravest human rights violations during the war in Nagorno-Karabakh resulted from Azerbaijani drones and other airstrikes. Azeri forces repeatedly struck civilian targets, including hospitals, schools, and other non-military installations throughout the region. Additionally, Azerbaijan procured cluster munitions from Israel, and these were used indiscriminately against civilian targets. The use of cluster munitions is of particular concern to international observers, due to their propensity to inflict massive collateral damage. The use of these weapons is forbidden by international law, but there is significant evidence that Azeri forces used cluster munitions in residential areas.
The damage done to civilians during the most recent fighting was profound. Thousands of ethnic Armenians from throughout Nagorno-Karabakh were forced to leave their homes after territory fell back into Azerbaijan’s hands, similarly to the mass displacement of thousands of local Azeris following the First Nagorno-Karabakh War in the 1990s. Some of the Armenians who lived in areas handed over to Azerbaijan burned their houses rather than allow Azeris to live in them. Estimates indicate that upward of 60% of the population in Nagorno-Karabakh were displaced, which totals roughly 60,000 people. Additionally, it is believed that over one hundred civilians were killed during the fighting. Throughout the most recent flare-up between Armenia and Azerbaijan, civilians were caught in the middle of the violence from both sides. This took a severe toll on the noncombatant population in Nagorno-Karabakh, and the challenges caused by the thousands of displaced people will have lasting implications for years to come.
Conclusion
While Nagorno-Karabakh makes headlines today for the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan, the roots of the conflict go back centuries. From the Persian Empire’s initial control of the region through to the dissolution of the Soviet Union, ethnic tension, religious violence, and fierce nationalism have been innate characteristics of Nagorno-Karabakh. The rulers of the region at different times each had a unique set of circumstances and identities that they introduced to Nagorno-Karabakh which further complicated the situation in the region. The conflict occurring in Nagorno-Karabakh today is a flaring of centuries-old tension based on self-determination and ethnic identity.
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