The Kremlin says Russian peacekeeping forces in Nagorno-Karabakh have begun evacuating hundreds of civilians following the launch of attacks on Tuesday by Azerbaijani forces against the enclave.
Nagorno-Karabakh lies in Azerbaijan but is inhabited mainly by Armenians.
On Tuesday, Russian peacekeepers reportedly took 469 people, including 185 children, to a base belonging to their forces. Russian troops have been operating in the enclave since 2020 to oversee the peace brokered by Russia.
Russia has traditionally been considered Armenia’s ally, while Azerbaijan receives support from Turkey. Azerbaijanis are ethnically and religiously related to Turkey, whose foreign ministry said it considered Azerbaijan’s military operation in Nagorno-Karabakh “necessary.”
According to Ankara, Baku was forced to take action because “legitimate concerns” about the situation in the area were not addressed.
Azerbaijan has long said that Armenia was allegedly engaged in a troop build-up in Nagorno-Karabakh, but Yerevan denies that Armenian troops are active in the enclave.
Turkey’s foreign ministry thinks talks between Armenia and Azerbaijan are now the only way to resolve the conflict around the disputed enclave.
