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Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan called the situation in the Hadrut region of Nagorno-Karabakh a “crisis”.
In the Hadrut region of Nagorno-Karabakh, in the area of the Khin Tager and Khtsaberd settlements, the Armenian and Russian military were surrounded by Azerbaijani troops. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated this to Radio Azatutyun in an interview published on December 16.
“According to our information, the Russian Blue Helmets are also surrounded. There is a communication problem, because because of the location, as well as the facts, there are certain communication problems, and the Russian Blue Helmets also have these problems, and there we have a certain crisis situation, “he said.
Pashinyan noted that there is information about new prisoners.
Karabakh leader Arayik Harutyunyan said that “several dozen military personnel from the Karabakh Defense Army were captured,” Radio Azatutyun reports.
The Russian Defense Ministry told RIA Novosti that its soldiers were not surrounded in Karabakh.
On the night of December 16, a video of the alleged withdrawal of the Armenian army from the siege in the Hadrut region appeared on social media. This fact was confirmed by the Ministry of Defense of Armenia.
“The video corresponds to reality. The operation was carried out thanks to the active actions of the Russian peacekeeping contingent carrying out a peacekeeping mission in the Republic of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh. – “GORDON”), with the direct mediation of the commander [российским] contingent of Lieutenant General Rustam Muradov, “the ministry said in a statement.
In 1991, Nagorno-Karabakh, with the support of Armenia, declared its independence from Azerbaijan. This led to hostilities that lasted until 1994. The armed conflict ended with the signing of the Bishkek Protocol on an armistice and a ceasefire, but from time to time armed clashes broke out between the parties. During the conflict, more than 30 thousand people died in the region. Azerbaijan considers Nagorno-Karabakh as a territory occupied by Armenia.
On September 27, 2020, the biggest conflict in recent years broke out in Nagorno-Karabakh. The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry accused Armenia of a “large-scale provocation”, shelling of the Azerbaijani army positions and announced the beginning of a “swift counteroffensive”. The Armenian authorities, in turn, stated that the Azerbaijani army had launched an offensive against Nagorno-Karabakh. During the conflict, the parties used tanks, heavy artillery and aircraft. There were reports of soldiers and civilians killed and injured.
Both countries involved in the conflict announced mobilization. Agreements on an armistice were reached in Nagorno-Karabakh on several occasions, but each time they were violated.
On the night of November 10, representatives of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia (as mediator) signed a declaration to end the war in Karabakh. According to the agreements, 1,960 Russian peacekeepers are deployed along the line of contact in Nagorno-Karabakh. Pashinyan said that this decision was extremely difficult for him, but that there was no alternative. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev specified that Pashinyan was “forced” to sign a document “very beneficial” for Baku.
On December 12, the Armenian Defense Ministry announced the resumption of the Azerbaijani army offensive in the direction of Boyuk Taglar – Khtsaberd settlements. Azerbaijan explained this with “provocative actions by Yerevan in the liberated territories of Nagorno-Karabakh”, but did not specify what exactly happened.
On December 13, the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry explained the situation. Part of the Armenian armed forces, according to the ministry, remained in the forest area of Hadrut village, the military began to commit “terrorist acts and sabotage actions against Azerbaijani civilians and military.”
According to the Azerbaijan Defense Ministry, 2,783 soldiers died during the fighting in Nagorno-Karabakh, more than 100 combatants are considered missing. In Armenia, on November 14, it became known about 2317 soldiers killed.
Russia has deployed the headquarters of the “peacekeeping forces” in Stepanakert. On November 16, Russia sent 140 planes with its “peacekeepers” to Nagorno-Karabakh.
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