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Russia to Intervene if Fighting Reaches Armenia, Azerbaijan Inflicts Heavy Casualties on Armenian Army, Which Used Banned Cluster Munitions

October 31, 2020

Azerbaijani, Armenian top diplomats meet in Moscow for Nagorno-Karabakh peace talks, October 9, 2020	Azerbaijani father grieving the death of his child, who died by Armenian shelling, October 28, 2020

 

Armenia’s use of banned cluster munitions on Azerbaijan 'flagrant disregard for civilian life,' HRW says

BY DAILY SABAH

 ANKARA POLITICS 

OCT 30, 2020 1:19 PM GMT

The Human Rights Watch (HRW) on Thursday urged Armenia to stop using internationally banned weapons on Armenia amid clashes and described the act as a “flagrant disregard for civilian life and international law.”

“Armenian forces either fired or supplied internationally banned cluster munitions and at least one other type of long-range rocket used in an attack on the city of Barda, 230 kilometers (143 miles) west of Azerbaijan’s capital Baku on Oct. 28,” the rights group stated.

Armenian forces on Wednesday hit the city center of Azerbaijan's Barda, setting multiple shops and vehicles on fire. At least 21 civilians were killed and more than 40 were injured in the attack.

This followed Tuesday's attacks that killed at least four civilians, including a toddler, in an Armenian missile strike on a village in Barda.

“There’s a reason these brutal weapons are banned by an international treaty and using them in a city center shows flagrant disregard for civilian life and international law,” said Belkis Wille, senior crisis and conflict researcher at the HRW, adding that countries should condemn the use of cluster munitions.

The HRW reiterated that on Oct. 28, Armenian Defense Ministry spokesperson Shushan Stepanian said on Facebook: “The statement of the Ministry of Defense of Azerbaijan that the Armed Forces of Armenia allegedly hit the town of Barda with Smerch is groundless and false.” However, on Oct. 29, it issued two posts listing military objects that were used in the Barda attack.

Since the clashes erupted on Sept. 27, Armenia has repeatedly attacked Azerbaijani civilians and forces, even violating three humanitarian cease-fires since Oct. 10.

At least 90 civilians have been killed and 392 injured in Armenia’s attacks on Azerbaijani civilian settlements since Sept. 27, the Prosecutor General's Office of Azerbaijan reported Thursday. Around 2,406 houses, 92 apartment buildings and 423 public buildings were demolished or became unusable.

https://www.dailysabah.com/politics/armenias-use-of-banned-cluster-munitions-on-azerbaijan-flagrant-disregard-for-civilian-life-hrw-says/news

 

Azerbaijan inflicts heavy casualties on Armenian Army in Nagorno-Karabakh clashes

BY DAILY SABAH WITH AGENCIES

 ISTANBUL POLITICS  OCT 30, 2020 11:06 AM GMT+3 Explosions are seen behind the mountains during a military conflict outside Stepanakert (Khankendi) in the Armenian-occupied region of Nagorno-Karabakh, Oct. 30, 2020. (AP Photo)

Azerbaijan announced Friday that it had countered night attacks by Armenia from various directions on the front while combat operations continued along the frontline, a month after clashes erupted between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the Armenian-occupied region of Nagorno-Karabakh.

In a statement, the Azerbaijani Ministry of Defense said the clashes took place mostly in the vicinity of Aghdara, Khojavand and Qubadli.

It added that Azerbaijani troops had eliminated many Armenian forces, as well as two Su-25 ground attack aircraft, three T-72 tanks, an armored infantry vehicle, two Smerch and one Grad Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS), 10 different types of artillery, a Gvozdika self-propelled howitzer, an OSA anti-aircraft missile system and a P-18 radar system.

"The front is under the Azerbaijani army's control," it added.

In an earlier statement late Thursday, the ministry also said over the past 24 hours Armenian forces fired on the positions of units of the Azerbaijani army and civilian settlements with weapons, including artillery and missiles.

While the operations continued mainly in the Khojavend, Fuzuli and Qubadli directions of the front, attempts by the Armenian Armed Forces to attack were "resolutely prevented," said the statement, adding there were casualties among the Armenian troops due to Azerbaijan's retaliatory measures.

Armenian forces meanwhile subjected the territory of the Goranboy and Tartar regions of Azerbaijan to artillery fire in the morning hours, it said.

Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev also announced Friday that the Azerbaijani army has liberated nine more villages in the Nagorno-Karabakh region from Armenia's occupation.

"Victorious Armed Forces of Azerbaijan have liberated Khudaverdili, Gurbantepe, Shahveledli and Khubyarli villages of Jabrayil, Aladin and Vejneli villages of Zengilan, Kavdadig, Memer and Mollali villages of Qubadli. Long live Azerbaijan's Armed Forces! Karabakh is Azerbaijan!" Aliyev said on Twitter.

In another statement, the leader of Armenian separatist forces in Nagorno-Karabakh said Thursday that Azerbaijani forces were closing in on the historic town of Shusha, whose capture would mark a turning point after a month of fighting.

In a video recorded outside the town's famed cathedral, Arayik Harutyunyan warned that advancing enemy forces were "5 kilometers (3 miles) at the most" from the town.

"The enemy's main goal is to capture Shushi ... whoever controls Shushi controls Artsakh," he said, using the Armenian names for the town and Nagorno-Karabakh.

He called on Armenians to come to the defense of the strategically important town, the second-largest in Karabakh after the main city Stepanakert (Khankendi).

"In the next few days, we need to reverse this situation at the front and punish the enemy right at the gates of Shushi. Let's unite and fight together," he said.

Gaining control of Shusha would be a major victory for Azerbaijani forces, who have been making gains against Armenian forces since new fighting erupted over Nagorno-Karabakh a month ago.

The town is located on strategic heights over Stepanakert and on the road linking the city with Armenian territory.

Since clashes broke out on Sept. 27, Armenia has repeatedly attacked Azerbaijani civilians and forces, even violating three humanitarian cease-fire agreements since Oct. 10.

To date, at least 90 civilians have lost their lives, including 11 children and infants, and 392 people – including at least 36 children – have been injured in attacks by Armenian forces. Some 2,406 homes and 92 multi-apartment residential buildings have been destroyed, and 423 civilian facilities have been damaged.

More than 1,200 people from both sides have been reported dead since the fighting began, including over 130 civilians, and thousands have been forced from their homes.

Azerbaijan has not released any figures on its military casualties, and the death toll is believed to be higher, with Russian President Vladimir Putin saying last week that close to 5,000 people had been killed.

Diplomatic efforts have continued, though planned talks involving the two countries' foreign ministers in Geneva on Thursday were postponed for at least a day.

Azerbaijan has claimed to be making significant gains since the fighting began by retaking areas it lost in the 1990s war, in particular in a buffer zone outside Karabakh seized by Armenians. Armenia has admitted to suffering losses and called on volunteers to join the fighting.

Azerbaijan said on Thursday it had handed to Armenia the bodies of 30 troops killed in the fighting.

"Armenia has failed to show goodwill in that matter," but thanks to Russian mediation has "agreed to open a humanitarian corridor" for the evacuation of Azerbaijani soldiers' bodies from battlefields, Azerbaijani President Aliyev's aide Hikmet Hajiyev told journalists.

Armenian Defense Ministry spokesperson Shushan Stepanyan confirmed the handover mediated by Russia and the Red Cross and added that the Armenian side was ready to return the bodies of slain Azerbaijani soldiers.

Azerbaijan to establish special administrations

Aliyev also signed a document Thursday to establish temporary special administrations in regions liberated from the occupation of Armenia in Nagorno-Karabakh.

A temporary special administration organization will be established for each region and the Interior Ministry will appoint directors, according to the decision.

Organizations will carry out activities in coordination with the Defense Ministry and State Border Service. They will be responsible for the security of transportation and telecommunications infrastructure facilities, energy and water supply systems, water tanks and key facilities, including private facilities that pose a high danger to the environment.

They will also be in charge of collection, inventory and protection of detected military equipment, weapons, ammunition, poisonous and explosive materials and the protection of public order and security.

Together with relevant institutions, the organizations will conduct activities such as demining land, preventing acts such as terrorism, espionage and sabotage, and taking inventory of land and real estate, cultural assets, mines and natural resources.

Aliyev announced that more than 130 villages, four cities and several settlements, as well as strategic locations, have been liberated from Armenia's occupation.

Relations between the two former Soviet republics have been tense since 1991 when the Armenian military occupied Nagorno-Karabakh.

About 20% of Azerbaijan's territory – including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent regions – has been under illegal Armenian occupation for nearly three decades.

The Minsk Group, which was set up in 1992 by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and co-chaired by France, Russia and the U.S. – was formed in 1992 to find a peaceful solution to the conflict, but to no avail. A cease-fire, however, was agreed to in 1994.

World powers including Russia, France and the U.S. have called for a sustainable cease-fire. Turkey, meanwhile, has supported Baku's right to self-defense and demanded the withdrawal of Armenia's occupying forces.

Russia provides 94% of Armenia’s weapons over 5 years

Meanwhile, a report released by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) revealed that Russia has supplied 94% of the military equipment Armenia has obtained over the past five years.

The equipment provided includes the S-300 anti-missile system, Tor missile systems, 9K720 Iskander short-range ballistic missile systems and Su-30 warplanes.

Armenia spent $5 billion to buy the equipment between 2015 and 2019.

Russia delivered some of the equipment without demanding payment or as loans, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute's (SIPRI) research showed.

Moscow sometimes issues credits to Armenia, which has a deteriorating economy.

In 2015, the two countries signed a treaty in which Russia agreed to issue a $200 million loan for military equipment delivered in 2018.

Russia has assumed the "neutral mediator" role while providing military equipment to occupying forces in the conflict as it co-chairs the Minsk Group.

Azerbaijan's president voiced suspicions about Russia, asking: "Why would someone who wants a cease-fire send weapons?"

Additionally, evidence indicates shipments of equipment to Nagorno-Karabakh from a Russian military base in Armenia. 

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Russia vows to support Yerevan if fighting reaches Armenia as Pashinian seeks Putin's help

BY FRENCH PRESS AGENCY - AFP

 MOSCOW POLITICS 

OCT 31, 2020 11:41 AM GMT

Russia said on Saturday it would provide "necessary" assistance to Yerevan in its conflict with Azerbaijan over the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh if fighting reached Armenia's territory.

"Russia will render Yerevan all necessary assistance if clashes take place directly on the territory of Armenia," the Russian Foreign Ministry said, calling on the warring sides to immediately halt fire.

Earlier on Saturday, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian asked Russian President Vladimir Putin to begin "urgent" consultations on providing security amid a conflict with Azerbaijan after fresh talks failed to agree to a cease-fire.

Pashinian sent the letter to Putin after Armenia and Azerbaijan failed to agree to a fresh cease-fire in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict during talks in Geneva on Friday and as fighting continued overnight and Saturday morning.

The announcement, released by the Armenian Foreign Ministry, raised fears of an escalation in fighting between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Armenia and Azerbaijan have been engaged in fierce fighting for more than a month over Nagorno-Karabakh, a region of Azerbaijan occupied by Armenia in the wake of the break-up of the Soviet Union.

The flare-up of the conflict has left more than a thousand dead, with world powers so far unable to persuade either side to stop fighting.

Russia has a military base in Armenia and has a defense treaty with Yerevan.

"The prime minister of Armenia has asked the Russian president to begin urgent consultations with the aim of determining the kind and amount of aid which the Russian Federation can provide Armenia to ensure its security," the Armenian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Russia has previously said that its defense pact with Armenia does not extend to the occupied region of Nagorno-Karabakh.

But Pashinian in his letter to Putin said that hostilities were getting closer to Armenia's borders and reiterated that Azerbaijan's ally Turkey was backing Baku, according to the statement.

He requested Moscow's help, invoking the two countries' close ties and a 1997 treaty on friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance.

Azerbaijan and Armenia have been locked in a bitter conflict over Karabakh since Armenian separatists backed by Yerevan occupied the mountainous province in a 1990s war that left 30,000 people dead.

The current clashes broke out on Sept. 27 and fighting has persisted despite the repeated international attempts to secure a cease-fire.

The warring sides have three times agreed to cease-fires during recent talks mediated by Russia, France and the United States but the truces have all quickly fallen apart.

More than 1,200 people from both sides have been reported dead since the fighting began, but the actual death toll is believed to be substantially higher.

https://www.dailysabah.com/politics/russia-vows-to-support-yerevan-if-fighting-reaches-armenia-as-pashinian-seeks-putins-help/news

Azerbaijani, Armenian top diplomats meet in Geneva for Nagorno-Karabakh peace talks

BY REUTERS

OCT 30, 2020 2:03 PM GMT

The foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan arrived in Geneva for talks Friday to resolve a conflict in the occupied region of Nagorno-Karabakh, where hundreds have been killed in more than a month of fighting.

The ministers met envoys from France, Russia and the United States, co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group charged with resolving the conflict that has escalated in recent days.

The foreign ministries of Armenia and Azerbaijan both confirmed that their respective ministers had arrived in Geneva.

Human rights groups called for an immediate halt to the use of banned weapons after confirming the use of cluster munitions by Armenia in an attack on the Azerbaijani city of Barda.

The worst fighting in the South Caucasus for more than 25 years has raised fears of a wider war that could suck in Russia and Turkey, an ally of Azerbaijan. It also poses a threat to pipelines carrying oil and gas from Azerbaijan to world markets.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that Turkey, which has demanded a bigger role, should be among the countries involved in talks to end the fighting.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, speaking to journalists Friday, said peacekeeping troops would enter the conflict zone only with the agreement of both Armenia and Azerbaijan.

Nagorno-Karabakh is internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan but is populated and controlled by ethnic Armenians. About 30,000 people were killed in a 1991-94 war in the region.

Armenia, like Azerbaijan, regards the territory as part of its historic homeland and says the population there needs its protection. Azerbaijan rejects any solution that would leave Armenians in control of the enclave.

Three cease-fires have failed to halt the latest fighting, the most recent brokered in Washington last Sunday by U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

Confirming its participation in talks, the U.S. mission in Geneva said the United States "continues to call on Armenia and Azerbaijan to stop targeting civilian areas and to implement their agreed-upon commitments to a cease-fire."

https://www.dailysabah.com/politics/diplomacy/azerbaijani-armenian-top-diplomats-meet-in-geneva-for-nagorno-karabakh-peace-talks

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