Nagorno-Karabakh: Why did the war break out? What happens next? – The Azerbaijani Ambassador in Budapest answers – Exclusive interview

Nagorno-Karabakh is a peculiar area, as it has been the site of smaller and larger armed clashes for decades. It also evokes heavy emotions in Azerbaijani and Armenian people. After the current war, which ended with a peace treaty on November 10, it is worth talking a little about the past, a lot about the present, and even more about the future of the region. Here is an interview with Ambassador of the Republic of Azerbaijan in Hungary, Prof. Vilayat Guliyev:

Daily News Hungary (DNH): First of all, thank you very much for the opportunity to be received by the Embassy. Surely, the last weeks and months must have been very hectic for you, but before we turn specifically to the topic of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, can you tell us where the conflict actually comes from? What is the origin of the bad blood between Azerbaijani and Armenian people?

Ambassador Guliyev: That is a long story. After the collapse of the Russian Empire in 1917, three independent republics emerged in the South Caucasus – Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Georgia. Defining borders between these states turned out to be a very painful process. All three national communities – Georgians, Azerbaijanis, and Armenians –  lived in Tbilisi (Tiflis). Armenians were the second most populous community living in Baku, and Azerbaijanis comprised 60% of the population of Yerevan, which was called Irevan at the time. The situation was similar in smaller cities and villages, and there were a lot of disputes between parties. Georgians and Azerbaijanis had a history of national statehood before they were incorporated into the Russian Empire, and hence it was relatively easier for them to define territories of their newly restored states. Armenians, on the other hand, did not have a state or a capital city before being relocated into the territory of the Russian Empire. So, in the process of the formation of its statehood, Armenia had territorial claims both towards Azerbaijan and Georgia. Due to these claims, there was a bloody war between these two neighbouring Christian countries in 1919. Armenian claims to Nagorno Karabakh where Azerbaijani and Armenian populations lived together also started during these times. However, during the First Azerbaijani Republic (1918-1920), Karabakh was part of Azerbaijan and was recognised as Azerbaijani territory at the Paris Peace Conference.

After Bolshevik Russia occupied South Caucasus in 1920-1921, the Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic (Armenian SSR) voiced its territorial claims once again. But the Caucasian Bureau of Bolshevik Party decided that Karabakh should remain within the territory of Azerbaijan.

At the same time, taking into account that Armenians constituted an ethnic majority in this area, the Autonomous Region was created. In other words, Armenian claims that Stalin granted Nagorno Karabakh to Azerbaijan, which are widely circulated in European media, are completely groundless. This region belonged to us before the Bolshevik rule and also remained within our territory after that. Armenian claims to Karabakh were rejected.

During the collapse of the Soviet Union, Armenians asserted their claims once again. With the silent consent of Moscow, they started a war against Azerbaijan. The Nagorno Karabakh Autonomous Region and seven adjacent districts of Azerbaijan were occupied, and hundreds of thousands of Azerbaijanis were expelled from the occupied territories due to ethnic cleansing. The so-called “Nagorno Karabakh Republic” was proclaimed. But Azerbaijan had never yielded to this situation. We tried to resolve the conflict peacefully, in accordance with the 4 accepted resolutions of the UN Security Council. But Armenian neglect of the international law and the continuous Armenian violations of ceasefire and military provocation on the 27^th September forced us to resort to military action.

DNH: In 1994, you lost control of the area. Which were the most decisive events in the zone before September 2020?

Ambassador Guliyev: Although both parties agreed to a ceasefire in 1994, it was never truly fulfilled. Separatists in Nagorno Karabakh and their patrons in Yerevan did not intend to honour the agreement. In April 2016, we witnessed the most prominent escalation of the conflict.

During this so-called “Four Day War”, the Azerbaijani army crushed the Ohanian Line and liberated some strategic heights and villages.

But at the time, Moscow intervened, and war efforts were halted. 

DNH: After 26 years, something happened on September 27th, 2020, that gave the initial impetus to the armed attack. What was that?

Ambassador Guliyev: The main reason was that Armenia never stopped its aggressive policy towards us. Our villages near the line of contact were always exposed to enemy fire. During these years, tens of our soldiers as well as civilians – women and children – were killed by the Armenian snipers. Not only Nagorno Karabakh but Armenia itself had become a threat to our people. The Armenian Defense Minister David Tonoyan, who resigned after the current war, in April of this year had openly stated that their purpose was “fighting a new war for the new territories.” 

Armenia soon put these threats into action, and on July 12^th started a large-scale military provocation on the Azerbaijani-Armenian border in Tovuz far – hundreds of kilometres away – from the line of contact in Nagorno-Karabakh.

They were trying to gain control of strategic heights which would, in turn, let them control an important energy and logistics corridor. Azerbaijan repelled the attack, although with numerous casualties. Later in August, an Armenian subversive group was neutralised, and its leader was captured. Finally, on September 27^th, another Armenian provocation forced our military to take firm action, and a 44-day-long war began, resulting in our victory.

DNH: During the war, which was one and a half months long, Azerbaijan occupied a large area. What were the primary targets?

Ambassador Guliyev: I think we should use a different term here. Please look at the map, the war was conducted within internationally recognised borders of Azerbaijan.

How can we occupy our own territories?

On the contrary, we liberated territories occupied by the Armenian forces. Until 1991, there was a Nagorno Karabakh Autonomous Region within Azerbaijan. Its territory was 4,380 sq. km., and its population comprised 120,000 Armenians and 60,000 Azerbaijanis. As I noted earlier, at the time of the decline of the Soviet Union, Armenians demanded that Nagorno Karabakh be merged into Armenia. With the help of the former Soviet military units and the international terrorist organisation ASALA, they waged a large-scale war against Azerbaijan. Not only did they occupy the territory of Nagorno Karabakh, but of the adjacent 7 districts of Azerbaijan as well, their territory being more than 8,000 square kms. As you can see, Armenian separatists controlled more than 12,000 square kms of the territory of Azerbaijan. They had carried out a complete ethnic cleansing of this territory. They did not agree to the peaceful resolution of the conflict. Armenian Prime Minister Pashinyan declared that “Nagorno Karabakh is Armenia, full stop” and announced that he would not return a single sq km to Azerbaijan. Armenia actually withdrew from the OSCE Minsk Group conflict resolution format. As a matter of fact, these peace talks had become quite fruitless.

Despite continuing for 26 years, not a single village was returned to Azerbaijan. Not a single Azerbaijani was given a chance to return to his home. In fact, there was not a place to return to.

All the cities and villages where Azerbaijanis used to live were destroyed. Thus, we had only one option to address the aggressor using the language they would understand. Azerbaijan waged a just war to get rid of the occupational army and liberated seven districts which Armenians did not want to return peacefully. 

DNH: Part of the international press stressed that the Azerbaijani army was trying to put pressure on the civilian population by attacking civilians. Other media outlets called attention to the rocket attacks in Azerbaijani cities by the Armenian military. Where is the truth? Somewhere in between?

Ambassador Guliyev: From the first day, Azerbaijan has conducted warfare only against the military units of the enemy and against legitimate military targets. Our army never targeted civilians. Our soldiers rescued sick and elderly Armenians who were left behind in the villages fled by the Armenians. These civilians were returned to the Armenian side afterwards. Some civilian objects in Nagorno Karabakh must have been harmed. Nor do I rule out that some civilians could have been killed or wounded during the conflict on the Armenian side. But the scale is completely different.

To force the Azerbaijani army to stop the military operations, the Armenian side deliberately attacked Ganja, Barda, Tartar, Naftalan, Agjabedi, Beylagan, Mingachevir, as well as many other villages using cluster munitions as well.

As a result, 91 civilians, including 16 children, were murdered, and 405 people were wounded. 2,488 houses, 461 civilian objects, and 97 high-rise buildings were damaged and destroyed. Affected cities are tens of kilometres away from the line of conflict. There has not been any military infrastructure around. Civilian areas were targeted during night time. The Armenian side repeatedly attacked the Mingachevir water reservoir. Destruction of this reservoir could lead to humanitarian catastrophe for 2 million people in Azerbaijan and Georgia. At the same time, we can all witness barbaric methods used by Armenians in the districts which are currently being handed over to Azerbaijan according to the November 9th peace accord, namely, Aghdam, Kalbajar, and Lachin – they destroy civilian infrastructure, burn down forests, and lay mines. As soon as they agreed to surrender, the Armenian side started discussing revenge plans. 

DNH: The peace treaty was signed on November 10, and since then the Azerbaijani have actually regained much of the lost territory. Do you think there will be peace in Nagorno-Karabakh? Or can we expect another war?