More trouble for Vladimir Putin, a new war about to break out, guns, ammunition and tanks on the move, the nightmare of the conflict in Karabakh returns

A war front that seemed forgotten to Vladimir Putin is reopening. We are talking about Nagorno-Karabakh, a disputed region between Azerbaijan and Armenia, in the Caucasus. Russia mediates the conflict between the two countries and has accused Baku of violating the ceasefire agreement that ended the 2020 war by allowing its troops to cross the demarcation line. "On March 25, 2023, a unit of the Armed Forces of Azerbaijan crossed the contact line in the Shusha district, violating" the agreement reached in 2020, the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement. Recently, negotiations between the two sides appeared to have finally started on a solution for the stricken region, but new firefights in March suddenly raised the tension. "The nightmare of a new conflict in Karabakh" is already concrete, writes Il Giornale that has devoted an analysis to the case. The Azerbaijanis, it said, have rejected Moscow's accusations, reiterating that "Azerbaijani army units have taken adequate control measures to prevent the use of unpaved roads north of Lachin Street for illegal activities, as well as further escalation of the situation and possible provocations due to the transportation of weapons and ammunition to the territories of Azerbaijan from Armenia". Baku's accusation is that Armenia is intensifying "the transportation of military personnel, weapons and ammunition, anti-personnel mines, as well as other military equipment " in the territory under the jurisdiction of Azerbaijan and where the Russian peacekeeping contingent is temporarily stationed. A peace that, with Russia involved in the war in Ukraine,

What is behind the conflict over the Nagorno-Karabakh region?

At the center of this conflict is the Nagorno-Karabakh region. It is recognized as part of Azerbaijan, but is controlled by Armenians. The states fought a bloody war in the 1980s and 1990s. Although they declared a ceasefire they never reached a peace agreement. Nagorno-Karabakh is part of Azerbaijan but its population is mainly Armenian. When the Soviet Union capitulated in 1980 the region voted to become part of Armenia, starting a war that ended only with a ceasefire in 1994. Since then the Nagorno-Karabakh region has remained part of Azerbaijan but controlled by ethnic Armenian separatist forces supported by the Armenian Government. Negotiations that continued for decades, brokered by international powers, never finalized a peace agreement. Armenia is a country with a largely Christian population, while oil-rich Azerbaijan has a predominantly Muslim population. Meanwhile, Turkey has close relations with Azerbaijan, while Russia is allied with Armenia, although it has good relations with Azerbaijan as well. The Caucasian mountains are of great strategic importance in the region of South-Eastern Europe. For centuries, various powers in the region, both Christian and Muslim, have struggled for control there. Present-day Armenia and Azerbaijan became part of the Soviet Union when it was formed in the 1920s. Nagorno-Karabakh was an ethnically Armenian majority region, but the Soviets gave control of the area to Azerbaijani authorities. Armenians in the Nagorno-Karabakh region have repeatedly called to be transferred under the control of the Armenian government. But it wasn't until the Soviet Union began to fall in the 1980s that Nagorno-Karabakh's regional parliament officially voted to become part of Armenia. Azerbaijan tried to suppress the separatist movement but Armenia stopped it. This led to ethnic clashes, and after Armenia and Azerbaijan declared independence from Moscow, the situation precipitated into a real war. The conflict only stopped with the ceasefire of 1994. Since then, the province has remained part of Azerbaijan, but is controlled by Armenian separatists who are supported by the government in Yerevan. Until recently, negotiations have been mediated by major international powers, but have not produced any peace agreement. Azerbaijan tried to suppress the separatist movement but Armenia stopped it. This led to ethnic clashes, and after Armenia and Azerbaijan declared independence from Moscow, the situation precipitated into a real war. The conflict only stopped with the ceasefire of 1994. Since then, the province has remained part of Azerbaijan, but is controlled by Armenian separatists who are supported by the government in Yerevan. Until recently, negotiations have been mediated by major international powers, but have not produced any peace agreement. Azerbaijan tried to suppress the separatist movement but Armenia stopped it. This led to ethnic clashes, and after Armenia and Azerbaijan declared independence from Moscow, the situation precipitated into a real war. The conflict only stopped with the ceasefire of 1994. Since then, the province has remained part of Azerbaijan, but is controlled by Armenian separatists who are supported by the government in Yerevan. Until recently, negotiations have been mediated by major international powers, but have not produced any peace agreement. but it is controlled by Armenian separatists who are supported by the government in Yerevan. Until recently, negotiations have been mediated by major international powers, but have not produced any peace agreement. but it is controlled by Armenian separatists who are supported by the government in Yerevan. Until recently, negotiations have been mediated by major international powers, but have not produced any peace agreement.