Armenia and Azerbaijan fight over Nagorno-Karabakh
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The reading
Heavy fighting has broken out between Armenia and Azerbaijan. There is a danger the fighting could lead to a bigger conflict between the two countries. Their trouble is over a region that is on their border called Nagorno-Karabakh. This is a disputed territory. It is internationally recognized as being part of Azerbaijan but it has a majority Armenian ethnic population. It has governed itself for the past few decades. The recent clashes resulted in the deaths of both civilians and soldiers. Armenia blamed Azerbaijan for starting the recent conflict. It said Azerbaijan launched missiles into the region. Azerbaijan's defence ministry said it launched missiles to "ensure the safety of the population" in the region.
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There have been tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan since the end of the Nagorno-Karabakh War in 1994. There have been many flashpoints between the two countries. The current clashes have seen the worst fighting in many years. An Al Jazeera journalist who is an expert on Nagorno-Karabakh described the situation as, "a very serious escalation". Neighboring countries are now getting involved. Turkey's President said his country would support Azerbaijan. Russia has given its backing to Armenia, but called for an immediate ceasefire and urgent negotiations. Iran, which shares a border with both Azerbaijan and Armenia, has offered to arrange peace talks.
Sources:
- https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-54314341
- https://edition.cnn.com/2020/09/27/europe/armenia-azerbaijan-tensions-nagorno-karabakh-intl/index.html
- https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/9/27/heavy-fighting-erupts-in-disputed-nagorno-karabakh-region
