Armenia’s geographical location puts the country directly in the middle of all of its enemies and has faced a rough history. Armenians had already faced a genocide with the Ottoman Empire in 1915, and now are being driven out of Artsakh. Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) is a separate republic that is within the legal and geographical limits of Azerbaijan but is home to approximately 120,000 Armenians. Cultural differences as well as historical violence have made Armenia and Azerbaijan hate each other. Now, Azerbaijan has resorted to ending the Armenian-backed republic through combat. 

12-12-2022

Azerbaijan launched an illegal blockade of Nagorno-Karabakh by sending “eco-activists” (activists defending the environment) to block the Lachin corridor, cutting off 120,000 Armenians from the world. Since that day, those in that region have been in great suffering. There is barely any food, water, electricity or natural gas in the region. The Lachin corridor is the only route to the outside world the entire region has, so by cutting it off, the people within the region are crippled. This capturing would remain for a few months

9-19-2023

The Azerbaijan military launched an attack on Nagorno-Karabakh, killing around 200 people. A cease-fire was ordered after one day. Later, Azerbaijan demanded for Nagorno-Karabakh’s leaders to surrender and for the region’s armed forces to disarm. In return Azerbaijan would not continue the attacks; this attack was in direct disobeyment of the ceasefire conditions the two countries set in 2020. 

9-20-2023

Azerbaijan began capturing key sections of the region, such as the Amaras Monastery and the Kashen mine, a major revenue point for the region. The Armenian government states that they were not a part of drafting the ceasefire agreement, but an Azerbaijan presidential envoy states that Russian peacekeepers helped draft it. This was clear when the bombing of a major city, Stepanakert, continued long after the ceasefire was to be in effect. President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan stated on television that the region of “Karabakh is Azerbaijan” and his “iron fist” would ensure Armenia would be gone from Karabakh.

Aftermath

Artsakh government spokesperson Armine Hayrapetyan stated that residents of Stepanakert were hiding in their basements after Azerbaijani forces surrounded the city. Currently, over 65,000 Armenians have fled for fear of ethnic cleansing and persecution. The Republic of Artsakh is to be dissolved at the start of 2024, in a decree signed by Artsakh president Samvel Shahramanyan. Many global committees have begun to call what happened a genocide. This is being qualified as a genocide because of the active decision by President Aliyev to cleanse Armenians from Azerbaijan, as he stated on television. Yerevan, Armenia’s capital city, is full of unrest over losing the region, and fearful of another Armenian genocide. Fear of an Armenian genocide by Azerbaijan’s hands has been present in the country for a long time, and many are terrified they will have to flee their home country.