On Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron held a phone call, during which they focused on discussions about the current situation in Nagorno-Karabakh. The Kremlin said that Putin and Macron spoke about prevention of escalations and hostilities in the region and the need to resume talks to settle the issue using diplomatic and political means. Moscow and Paris, who are both co-chairs of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE)’s Minsk Group created in 1992 to resolve the South Caucasus conflict, also stressed that Armenia and Azerbaijan must strictly observe their ceasefire agreements.
Further, the Kremlin revealed that the presidents agreed to continue close coordination and contact at “various levels,” including within the United Nations Security Council. In light of the tragic beheading of a French school teacher last Friday by an 18-year-old Chechen national born in Moscow, Macron spoke with Putin about reinforcing Franco-Russian cooperation in the global fight against terrorism and illegal immigration.
Simultaneously, Azerbaijan and Armenia announced that their foreign ministers would be visiting Washington on Friday to meet with United States (US) Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in an effort to bring an end to the ongoing conflict, which is the heaviest shelling that the Nagorno-Karabakh enclave has seen since the 1990s. The US is the third chair of the Minsk Group, which Turkish Parliament Speaker Mustafa Sentop has described as a “brain-dead” collective. Turkey is militarily supporting Baku in the ongoing skirmish.
The conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region has escalated sharply over the past two months. The Moscow-brokered humanitarian ceasefire took effect on 10 October and was violated almost immediately, following which an announcement by Azerbaijan to declare another ceasefire on 18 October also ended with an eruption of hostilities. Renewed violence that broke out on 27 September has seen intense battles rage on in the enclave as well as attacks by either side on major cities in each other’s sovereign territory. Both Baku and Yerevan have imposed martial law and set forces in motion for mobilization efforts. Both sides have also reported several civilian casualties. On Monday, the defence ministry of the autonomous Nagorno-Karabakh administration said that its military death toll had risen to 729.
Putin Discusses Nagorno-Karabakh Situation with Macron
During a phone call, the two leaders expressed the need to continue close coordination to deescalate the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict as co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group.
October 21, 2020
Russian President Vladimir Putin (R) and French President Emmanuel Macron in Versailles, 2017. SOURCE: GETTY IMAGES/AFP