The mountainous territory of Nagorno-Karabakh has been the subject of dispute between Azerbaijan and Armenia for decades. To understand the keys to the conflict, we must go back to 1988, when the autonomous region of Karabakh, located in the Soviet Socialist Republic of Azerbaijan but with an Armenian Orthodox Christian majority, requested to become part of Armenia. This event led, first, to a wave of ethnic clashes between the two regions and, later, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, to a large-scale war. The conflict continued until 1994, when a Russian-brokered ceasefire was declared after Armenian forces took control of the region and its surrounding areas. Although the agreement established that the area would remain part of Azerbaijan, in reality it came to be governed mainly by a self-proclaimed separatist republic, made up of Armenians and supported by the Armenian state.
The situation has been unstable ever since. Numerous clashes have disrupted the relative calm that prevailed in the region. However, the biggest military confrontation since the 1990s took place in 2020, also known as the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War. By the time both sides decided to sign a peace agreement, again with Russian mediation, in November of the same year, Azerbaijan had taken control of all the territories surrounding Nagorno-Karabakh. Following the agreement, Armenian forces had to abandon these lands and the Armenian people were consequently confined to a smaller area than they had inhabited in recent decades.
In 2023, Azerbaijan regained full control of the territory after a swift offensive, leading to the dissolution of the separatist republic. This event resulted in a mass exodus of its inhabitants to Armenia, generating a large-scale political and social conflict.
PEACE AGREEMENT
Nikol Pashinyan and Ilham Aliyev, leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan respectively, signed a peace agreement in Washington on 8 August, in the presence of US President Donald Trump, after several decades of bloody conflict in the territory. The agreement, apart from seeking to end hostilities, also aims to boost economic cooperation in the Caucasus. One of the main points of the agreement is the creation of a corridor called the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP), which will be approximately 43 kilometres long and run through Armenian territory. The corridor will connect Azerbaijan with its enclave of Nakhchivan, removing obstacles to commercial transit.
In addition to representing the first formal resolution of the conflict, the agreement includes development rights for US companies, economic cooperation, energy and infrastructure. The European Union has shown its support, highlighting the importance of the agreement for regional stability and normalisation. We can therefore argue that the pact represents a significant diplomatic breakthrough. However, it should be emphasised that much work remains to be done on the historical tensions surrounding the region and the legitimacy of Azerbaijan’s possession of the territory.
Sources:
Author: Asier Sánchez