The problem of Khankendi is in the background. How long?

Naturally, the Kremlin was concerned about the distrust of Armenians in Russia and at first, as a way out, trying to direct public criticism against the Armenian leadership, it presented Pashinyan as the culprit of the defeat. Convinced that it would be difficult to implement this option, Moscow decided to take the side of the current legitimate government and pursue a policy of restoring the former trust of Armenians in Russia. Thus, the most optimal way to win the confidence of the Armenians was launched - to strengthen the remnants of the separatist regime in Khankendi. And the Kremlin still uses a variety of methods to do this. Today, political observers in Moscow also admit that Russian peacekeepers remain the main guarantor of the existence of the separatist regime in Nagorno-Karabakh.

By deploying its armed forces on the territory of Karabakh, Russia is pursuing a policy of minimizing the influence of the Azerbaijani state on the territory under its control, which indicates that the Karabakh problem will not be resolved in the near future.

Despite the fact that 15 months have passed since the end of the war, Russia managed to direct the problem of Azerbaijani-Armenian relations into the mainstream of issues not directly related to Karabakh. By pushing the Karabakh issue to the background, highlighting such issues as removing obstacles in the transport infrastructure between the two countries and demarcating borders, Russia has de facto achieved that all powers in the territory controlled by the peacekeeping contingent belong to it. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov at a briefing on January 14 made it clear that the demarcation of the borders and the problems that have arisen here have nothing to do with the Karabakh issue.

Such a situation can only satisfy Armenia, and Pashinyan, no matter how amateurish he may be, managed to partially relieve himself of the burden of Karabakh in order to solve problems in Armenia, shifting the Karabakh issue to Russia.

After the end of the 44-day war, the proposals of the Kremlin "talking heads" on Russian TV channels "to transfer Karabakh to Russia by the 50th anniversary" and "to restore the former Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Region as part of Azerbaijan" are not accidental. There is a clear feeling that Russia is informally pursuing a policy in this direction in Karabakh, and one cannot help but see that it is pursuing it in an ascending line. It seems that the possibilities of Azerbaijan are limited, forbidden. Starting from the right to speak officially about the situation in this territory controlled by peacekeepers, to the right to elementary intervention. One of the dangerous moments are attempts to artificially Russify Karabakh.

For the first time in Karabakh, the adoption of the Russian language as the second state language, the construction of the Russian Orthodox Church in Khojaly (!), the installation of busts of Russian public and military figures, the artificial creation of the Russian community (which never existed there) and to lead it, sending a graduate to Khankendi the Academy of Special Services, an Armenian born in Baku with a Russian surname - Alexander Bordov, the visit to Khankendi of the State Duma deputy Milonov and Russian propaganda under the sauce of various humanitarian actions confirm this.

At the heart of the strategy of artificially creating a Russian community in Karabakh is the issuance of Russian passports and citizenship to members of the community, followed by a scenario familiar from Donbass and other conflict zones, in which the armed forces come to the rescue “in the name of the security of Russian citizens.” Messages about this are broadcast not only in the Armenian media as propaganda, but also on the website of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs.

If you pay attention to the content of one message circulated in recent days, it will be obvious to everyone what plans are being put forward. “As part of the support and strengthening of the Russian language and Russian culture in Nagorno-Karabakh, the military personnel of the Russian peacekeeping contingent visited the Stepanakert Drama Theater,” the report says. This is not just news about a cultural event, but a message to everyone, and especially to Armenians, that “strengthening the Russian language and Russian culture in Nagorno-Karabakh” is a strategic goal.

Does the above mentioned really serve peace in the region? It would be better if the peacekeepers took concrete steps to implement the provisions of the Declaration of November 10, 2020. The return of refugees and internally displaced persons for coexistence would be the best contribution to peace between the two peoples. Unfortunately, the peacekeepers have not yet taken any measures to organize regular meetings between the Armenian and Azerbaijani populations of Karabakh.

Azerbaijan's influence in the territories controlled by the peacekeepers is such that it cannot stop illegal searches of Azerbaijani vehicles traveling from Sugovushan to Kalbajar in the direction of Veng, not only by the peacekeepers, but also by the separatist police. Like it should have been. According to the agreement, the task of the Russian peacekeepers is to escort trucks to ensure their safety, and not to check what is being carried in the truck. Let's say a tank, a cannon and weapons are being transported in a car, but this cargo does not belong to any other state, it is Azerbaijan's own cargo, which it carries through its own territory. How is it that trucks and cars passing through Armenia and other countries along the Lachin corridor to Azerbaijan are superficially inspected and allowed into the territory, while Azerbaijani cargo on its territory is checked by both the police of Russia and the separatist regime? What is the purpose of checking, what are they looking for and what illegal things do they expect to find? We can transport any cargo across our territory, and the task of Russian peacekeepers is to ensure the safe transportation of this cargo! Unfortunately, the agreement between the two countries on the removal of barriers to road infrastructure does not apply to roads in the former Nagorno-Karabakh, and the Azerbaijani side still cannot use the Terter-Kelbajar, Agdam-Shusha road.

The official reaction of Azerbaijan to the scene of this unjustified check in Sugovushan in the video released by the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs is unknown. The situation is non-standard, and expressing claims to Commander Volkov (commander of the Russian military contingent in the peacekeeping mission zone, Major General Andrei Volkov - ed. note) will not solve the problem. The Russian side should be asked about the need for an adequate control procedure - the presence of official border, customs and law enforcement agencies of Azerbaijan at the checkpoint in the Lachin corridor.

As you can see, in the part of Karabakh that is not under our control, as the final solution of the problem is delayed, the situation becomes more complicated. In order to prevent the situation from escalating, the issue of Khankendi should be raised in parallel with the issues of demarcation of borders and corridors. The establishment of peace in the region depends on the complete settlement of the Karabakh conflict in accordance with international law.

Ilham Ismail