Focus on Karabakh

Crisis Group

Freedom house

helsinki commission

January 2023

June 2021

The 2020 war over Nagorno-Karabakh left many issues unresolved and the front lines volatile. The parties should establish a formal communication channel to address urgent post-war problems, Russian peacekeepers need a clearer mandate and aid agencies must be granted access to the conflict zone.

January 2021

While the war over Nagorno-Karabakh in 2020 moved the front lines in Azerbaijan’s favour, it has not brought peace. In this excerpt from our Watch List 2021, Crisis Group urges the EU and its member states to engage in humanitarian initiatives in both Armenia and Azerbaijan and continue to engage diplomatically through the OSCE Minsk Group.

December 2020

Russian mediation succeeded in ending the six-week war in Nagorno-Karabakh but left much unresolved, chiefly the region’s future status. If the cessation of hostilities is to become a sustainable peace, the parties should start by cooperating on humanitarian relief and trade before tackling larger questions

November 2020

A Russian-brokered deal has silenced the guns in Nagorno-Karabakh, the region disputed for decades by Armenia and Azerbaijan. It falls short, however, of a clear, sustainable peace. The parties and foreign stakeholders should work to ensure that the new arrangements have benefits for all concerned.

October 2020

Fighting in and around Nagorno-Karabakh is decimating towns and cities, displacing tens of thousands and killing scores. Combatants must cease attacks on populated areas and let humanitarian aid through. International actors, notably the UN and OSCE, should send monitors and push harder for a ceasefire.

November 2020

A Russian-brokered deal has silenced the guns in Nagorno-Karabakh, the region disputed for decades by Armenia and Azerbaijan. It falls short, however, of a clear, sustainable peace. The parties and foreign stakeholders should work to ensure that the new arrangements have benefits for all concerned.

October 2020

In this week’s episode of Hold Your Fire!, Olesya Vartanyan, Crisis Group’s senior South Caucasus analyst, opens up about how the recent flare-up in Nagorno-Karabakh is af ecting her personally. It could be the “big war” between Armenia and Azerbaijan that everyone was dreading would happen.

October 2020

Azerbaijan and Armenia are again at war over the breakaway Nagorno-Karabakh region. Russia and France may be best-positioned to broker a ceasefire, but would need to of er parties prospects of attaining goals through talks. It will be a hard sell.

July 2020

This report is the most recent published before the current conflict. It speaks on how the breakout of fighting in July 2020 “interrupted what had been a stretch of relative quiet on the Armenia-Azerbaijan border.” Importantly, it warns what the two nations must do in order to mediate this clash, and take preventative measures to evade the possibility of what could be an all-out war (which did end up occurring).

July 2020

This report is the most recent published before the current conflict. It speaks on how the breakout of fighting in July 2020 “interrupted what had been a stretch of relative quiet on the Armenia-Azerbaijan border.” Importantly, it warns what the two nations must do in order to mediate this clash, and take preventative measures to evade the possibility of what could be an all-out war (which did end up occurring).

December 2019

If they move quickly, Armenia and Azerbaijan could break out of their long impasse over the disputed territory of Nagorno-Karabakh. They could pursue quiet talks on thorny issues – settlements, peacekeepers and final status – but along separate tracks rather than in a single package.” Essentially, this report explores the narrow opening in potential discussions over Nagorno-Karabakh at the time, and offers advice on how the two nations “could start talks on issues underpinning the standoff.” This is all because “a new government in Yerevan said it was ready to seek a compromise solution,” and “Baku appeared to be more open to exploring ways to resolve the dispute.

June 2017

This resource explains the fragility of the conflict settlement efforts in 2017, and speaks on how both countries were at the time closer to war than ever. It exposes the underlying distrust between the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan, and advises mediators Russia, France, and the U.S. to step in and “pressure Yerevan and Baku to tone down inflammatory rhetoric.”

July 2016

This report explores the brief military battle between Armenia and Azerbaijan in April 2016. It talks about how the regional context had changed profoundly at the time, explains the negotiations agreed upon by both countries’ presidents, and warns how the risk of resumed military escalation could mean significant destruction.

November 2007

This report explores the various factors that draw the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict both toward and away from war. With commentary on oil money, presidential elections in both countries, and authorizations from the co-chairs of the Minsk Group, this is a good resource to see how different elements contributed to the risk of war in 2007.

October 2005

Eleven years after the 1994 ceasefire, burgeoning defense budgets, increasing ceasefire violations, and continuing demonization by each side of the other side are ominous signs that time for a peace agreement is running out. But a compromise can now be constructed around an approach that, while addressing all the matters in dispute, leaves the core issue of Nagorno-Karabakh’s ultimate status open for later resolution, after other measures have been put in place.

September, 2005

This report details the increasing risk in the Nagorno-Karabakh region between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Stating that in the region “there is neither war nor peace,” it explores the conflict from the ground up. Detailing the number of inhabitants of each nationality within the land, the internal declarations, and ceasefire violations, this source offers a good grasp of what is happening in Nagorno-Karabakh in 2005.

2022

This resource explores every facet into determining exactly how free of a region Nagorno-Karabakh is. From describing recent political developments from the previous year, to including facts regarding civil liberties and individual rights, this report dives deep into the political relations in Nagorno-Karabakh. (2022 EDITION).

2021

This resource explores every facet into determining exactly how free of a region Nagorno-Karabakh is. From describing recent political developments from the previous year, to including facts regarding civil liberties and individual rights, this report dives deep into the political relations in Nagorno-Karabakh. (2021 EDITION).

2020

This resource explores every facet into determining exactly how free of a region Nagorno-Karabakh is. From describing recent political developments from the previous year, to including facts regarding civil liberties and individual rights, this report dives deep into the political relations in Nagorno-Karabakh. (2020 EDITION).

2019

This resource explores every facet into determining exactly how free of a region Nagorno-Karabakh is. From describing recent political developments from the previous year, to including facts regarding civil liberties and individual rights, this report dives deep into the political relations in Nagorno-Karabakh. (2019 EDITION).

2002 | Report | Freedom in the World 2002

1998 | Carley, Patricia | Report | United States Institute of Peace

1998 | Report | Freedom in the World 1998

June 2017

This report by the Helsinki Commission very generally explores the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. It provides background on the origins of the conflict, and serves as a timeline in describing when conflict broke out and what the outcome was. Additionally, it explains diplomatic relations between the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, and even offers the role of the U.S. Helsinki Commission in resolving this conflict.