Tensions have once again flared up in the Caucasus region as dozens of Armenian and Azerbaijani soldiers have been killed in fighting between the two countries. The recent hostilities are the most deadly since the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war. The neighbours have been engaged in a decades-old conflict.

While international observers have called for de-escalation, here’s a look at what led to the current flashpoint.

What are Armenia and Azerbaijan fighting over?

The neighbouring countries have been fighting over a landlocked area known as Nagorno-Karabakh. The mountainous region is found within Azerbaijan’s border and is internationally recognised as a part of Azerbaijan. However, the area is inhabited by a predominantly ethnic Armenian population.

The nearby districts were populated by the ethnic Azeri majority until the first war erupted and they were displaced. The area was fully in control of Armenia and under the breakaway Republic of Artsakh, which also supports Armenia. Though Azerbaijan is predominantly Muslim and Armenia is a Christian majority nation, religious tensions play only a bit role in the conflict over the territory.

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In 2020, a six-week war saw Azerbaijan reclaim large swathes of its lost territory in Nagorno-Karabakh area before a Russian-mediated ceasefire saw an end to overt hostilities and Armenia returning all captured territory back to Azerbaijan outside of Nagorno-Karabakh. However, several border skirmishes and clashes followed in 2021.

The conflict began in 1988 when the Soviet Union broke down and the Armenian majority in Karabakh asked Karabakh to be transferred from Soviet Azerbaijan to Soviet Armenia. While early demonstrations were peaceful, tensions quickly rose and the conflict became violent. Finally, a full-scale war erupted in 1992 and only ended in 1994, with Armenia being in control of Nagorno-Karabakh and nearly 10 percent of Azerbaijan’s territory.

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Why did the conflict escalate now?

While Russia has played the role of a neutral mediator in the conflict in the past, Azerbaijan has repeatedly accused Russia of favouring Armenia in talks and negotiations. With Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine, where it seems to be struggling, Azerbaijan may have seen it as the chance to pursue more aggressive claims, including the complete dissolution of the Republic of Artsakh.

"I think there is a feeling in Azerbaijan that now is the time to deploy its power, its military advantage, and to extract the maximum that it can get," said Laurence Broers, associate fellow at the Russia and Eurasia Programme of Chatham House, to Reuters.

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With Russia being in a military defence pact with Armenia and Turkey backing Azerbaijan, the escalating conflict threatens to pull in regional powers in the fighting. With the Caucacus countries being a key region for pipelines carrying oil and gas, the conflict could further destabilise the international energy supply when the ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine has already sent food and power prices skyrocketing.

(Edited by : Shoma Bhattacharjee)

First Published:Sept 14, 2022 8:16 PM IST