The first Russian peacekeepers have been deployed to the Karabakh conflict zone, hours after Armenia and Azerbaijan agreed to end the fighting in the region and amid signs that the ceasefire. fire would hold where others had not.

The Russian military confirmed the first ground starts on Wednesday with the peacekeepers heading for the so-called Lachin Corridor, the main road from Nagorno-Karabakh to Armenia.

The truce came after significant advances by Azerbaijani forces which, according to the Armenian-backed leader of Nagorno-Karabakh, made it impossible to pursue his camp. It was celebrated in Azerbaijan but made Armenians bitter, and many government buildings stormed overnight, demanding that parliament invalidate the agreement.

The two countries have been locked in a conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh for decades, and there were fears that hostilities would escalate and move towards Turkey, which has put its weight behind Azerbaijan, and Russia, which has a security pact with Armenia.

READ MORE: Armenia accepts defeat in fight for occupied Azerbaijani territories

Six weeks of conflict

Russia appears to have negotiated a deal where others failed.

Nagorno-Karabakh is located in Azerbaijan but has been under the illegal occupation of ethnic Armenian forces backed by Armenia since the end of a separatist war in 1994. Heavy fighting erupted in late September – the conflict’s greatest escalation in a quarter of a century – and have killed hundreds, if not thousands. This includes some 1,300 troops from Nagorno-Karabakh, according to officials in the region, and dozens of civilians on both sides.

Several ceasefires announced over the past six weeks have collapsed almost immediately, but the current deal appears to be holding, with neither side reporting further fighting since it took effect.

It came days after Azerbaijan, which has achieved many territorial gains, pushed its offensive deeper into the region and seized control of the city of Shusha, strategically positioned on the heights overlooking the regional capital of Khankendi. .

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“A glorious victory”

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said it was “extremely painful for me personally and for our people”, calling the situation a “disaster”.

But Pashinyan said he had no choice and the military told him it was necessary to stop the fighting.

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev called the deal a “glorious victory”.

The pact was announced by President Vladimir Putin personally early Tuesday, hours after Azerbaijan shot down a Russian helicopter that was flying over Armenia, killing two crew members on board.

The agreement calls on the Armenian forces to cede control of certain areas they held outside the Nagorno-Karabakh borders, including the Lachin region, which crosses the Lachin corridor leading from Nagorno-Karabakh to Armenia.

The agreement calls for the corridor to remain open and be protected by Russian peacekeepers.

He also calls for transport links to be established across Armenia connecting Azerbaijan and its western enclave of Nakhichevan, which is surrounded by Armenia, Iran and Turkey.

READ MORE: Azerbaijan accidentally shoots down Russian helicopter, apologizes

Five-year term

Russia’s Defense Ministry said on Tuesday that at least 22 planes will be used to transport peacekeepers, and 12 have already landed in Armenia en route to Nagorno-Karabakh.

A total of 1,960 Russian peacekeepers are to be deployed under a five-year mandate.

Russia, France and the United States, co-chairs of the Minsk group, created in the 1990s by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe to mediate the conflict, have been trying to obtain a ceasefire since weeks, but little progress has been made in efforts. .

Putin on Tuesday described the fighting in Nagorno-Karabakh as a “really great tragedy” and said he was satisfied with “the agreements reached to end the bloodshed”. Some lawmakers have touted Russia’s success.

“Russia has succeeded in doing what neither (US President Donald) Trump nor (French President Emmanuel) Macron did – to end a war,” Yelena Panina, a House lawmaker, said Tuesday. bass of the Russian Parliament. “Our country has once again reaffirmed its status as a guarantor of peace in the South Caucasus.

The truce was also welcomed by Iran, which has borders with Armenia and Azerbaijan and expressed concern over the fighting after stray mortar fire and rockets occasionally injured people and damaged buildings in rural areas close to borders.

Turkey hails Azerbaijan’s “victory”

“It’s a great success,” Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said at a press conference.

“Territories that were under occupation for 30 years are being taken back. “

The Azerbaijani and Turkish leaders announced that Ankara would be involved in monitoring the ceasefire with Moscow as part of a peacekeeping center, which will be set up to accommodate the Russian and Turkish military.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Tuesday that the center will be located in Azerbaijan and is unrelated to the peacekeeping efforts described in Tuesday’s agreement.

Rather, it is “a completely different mission, another part of the joint effort,” Zakharova said.

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Source: AP