Putin and Erdogan call for a concerted effort to stop fighting in Nagorno-Karabakh



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The two leaders “stressed the need for a concerted effort to end the bloodshed as soon as possible and move towards a peaceful solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh problem,” the Kremlin said in a transcript of the interview.

This conversation between Putin and RT Erdogan was the first since the start of a new battle in Nagorno-Karabakh on September 27.

(23 photos)

PHOTO GALLERY. Conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh

Recent clashes between Yerevan-backed Armenian separatist forces controlling Azerbaijan and Nagorno-Karabakh have killed hundreds of people, including dozens of civilians, despite calls from the international community for peace to be restored and a halt negotiated. the fire in Moscow last week.

Nagorno-Karabakh, controlled by ethnic Armenians, was separated from Azerbaijan during the devastating war that erupted in the late 1990s with the collapse of the Soviet Union. This conflict claimed around 30 thousand. human lives.

The resurgence of fighting has been the biggest since the 1994 ceasefire. There are also growing fears that a broader regional conflict could unfold, with Turkey supporting Azerbaijan and Armenia securing Moscow’s support.

Turkey has been accused of sending loyal Syrian fighters to Ankara to fight Nagorno-Karabakh to reinforce Azerbaijani forces. Putin on Wednesday expressed “serious concern” about the role of Middle Eastern militants in the Karabakh conflict.

RT Erdogan told Putin that “Turkey tends to support a permanent solution in Nagorno-Karabakh” and also accused Armenia “of doing its occupation. [Karabache] permanent ”.

The Minsk Group of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), chaired by France, Russia and the United States, has worked to help resolve the decades-long conflict. The Kremlin said on Wednesday that Putin and Erdogan had expressed hope that Turkey, as a permanent member of the group, would play some role in reducing the situation.

Although the “humanitarian ceasefire” agreed during the talks between the Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign ministers in Moscow was due to take effect in Nagorno-Karabakh last Saturday, the shootings continued on both sides of the front line. Putin and Erdogan stressed the importance of adhering to this ceasefire, the Kremlin said.



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