Georgian president: Nagorno-Karabakh events will change Caucasus’ fate

err.ee
Sept 27 2023
NEWS

The events in Nagorno-Karabakh over the last week will change the future for the whole region, Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili told ERR during a visit to Estonia this week.

Zourabichvili said while Russia's ability to influence events in the Caucasus has been reduced due to the war in Ukraine, it has not stopped trying.

Speaking about the outbreak of violence in Nagorno-Karabakh that started last week, she said: "Well, first of all, it is a humanitarian tragedy and we now hope some humanitarian aid is coming through, although many of the people are leaving. And I think this is going to change completely the fate of the region because what has happened in this conflict and this first phase, early on, means that Armenia is clearly not relying anymore on Russian support and hence now the only perspective is to turn West."

Nagorno-Karabakh is recognized internationally as part of Azerbaijan but large areas of it have been controlled by ethnic Armenians for three decades. It is at the heart of one of the world's longest-running conflicts, the BBC says.

The events in Nagorno-Karabakh over the last week will change the future for the whole region, Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili told ERR during a visit to Estonia this week.

Zourabichvili said while Russia's ability to influence events in the Caucasus has been reduced due to the war in Ukraine, it has not stopped trying.

Speaking about the outbreak of violence in Nagorno-Karabakh that started last week, she said: "Well, first of all, it is a humanitarian tragedy and we now hope some humanitarian aid is coming through, although many of the people are leaving. And I think this is going to change completely the fate of the region because what has happened in this conflict and this first phase, early on, means that Armenia is clearly not relying anymore on Russian support and hence now the only perspective is to turn West."

Nagorno-Karabakh is recognized internationally as part of Azerbaijan but large areas of it have been controlled by ethnic Armenians for three decades. It is at the heart of one of the world's longest-running conflicts, the BBC says.