SUMMARY
The conflict between Armenians and Azeris represents one of the most intractable conflicts of the former Soviet Union. The tensions between the groups rose over the status of Nagorno-Karabakh, the Armenian enclave in Azerbaijan, but equally affected the communities of Armenians and Azeris outside Nagorno-Karabakh. The issue attracted major international attention when the conflict escalated into a full-scale intrastate war between Azerbaijan and separatists fighting for the independence of Nagorno-Karabakh in late 1991. The conflict remains unresolved until today, the situation is extremely volatile and the ceasefire that was signed in 1994 is often violated. However, already during the final years of the Soviet Union, tensions between Armenians and Azeris escalated and the subsequent violence claimed many lives. The tensions were not limited to the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast, but affected more or less all regions in Armenia and Azerbaijan with Azeri or Armenian minorities.
Nagorno-Karabakh is an enclave mainly inhabited by Armenians within the borders of Azerbaijan. It is a mountainous region of about 4,400 square kilometers, separated from Armenia by the “Lachin corridor”, a part of Azerbaijan that is almost exclusively inhabited by Azeris. Prior to the outbreak of violence, 192 000 inhabitants were living in Nagorno-Karabakh, roughly three-quarters of them being Armenians and the rest predominantly Azeris. The history is contested as both sides claim the territory to be part of their traditional homelands. However, like in many other parts of the Caucasus region, Nagorno-Karabakh has been ethnically mixed for many centuries. The dispute between Armenians and Azeris over the area of Nagorno-Karabakh can be traced back to World War I and the Sovietization of the Caucasus. After World War I, the Transcaucasian Democratic Federative Republic was divided into Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan. The years 1918-1920 saw a series of wars between Armenia and Azerbaijan, amongst others over the status of Nagorno-Karabakh. Previously, at the beginning of the 20th century, Nagorno-Karabakh had been part of Armenia. Under Soviet rule, the region was in 1921 allocated to Azerbaijan and became the Autonomous Oblast of Nagorno-Karabakh within the Soviet Socialist Republic of Azerbaijan on 7 July 1923. The creation of Nagorno-Karabakh as an autonomous oblast within Azerbaijan resulted in a large enclave of Armenians with a significant Azeri minority, which was surrounded by Azeris and separated from their ethnic kin in Armenia. The Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh were citizens of the Soviet Union and the Azerbaijani Soviet Socialist Republic. The case thus is a typical example of how the drawing of borders by the Soviet leadership in the Transcaucasus region created significant ethnic minorities in all republics.
During the mid-1980s, Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh and the Armenian republic began to articulate their resentments over the region being part of Azerbaijan instead of Armenia. The Azerbaijani government was criticized for neglecting Nagorno-Karabakh and discriminating against Armenians. Azeris, on the other hand, perceived the growing demands for unification of Nagorno-Karabakh with Armenia as attempts to tear apart their homeland, which was not least due to Azerbaijani historical narratives that depicted Nagorno-Karabakh as one of the central Azerbaijani states before the annexation by Russia. A range of factors contributed to the alienation of the groups. The crisis of the Soviet Union’s institutions and ideology in the 1980s contributed to a revival of ethnic and nationalist sentiments. Previously, ethnic self-consciousness had been suppressed by the official ideology of being part of one Soviet people. On top of that, the Glasnost policy had made it a lot easier to express political demands in the Soviet Union.
Furthermore, there was an economic dimension to the Armenian resentment against Azerbaijani rule over Nagorno-Karabakh. Although the standard of living in Nagorno-Karabakh was relatively high compared to most parts of Azerbaijan, the Armenian majority in the enclave was poorer than their counterparts in Armenia. In the eyes of many Armenians, this was a result of deliberate policies of the Azeri leadership in Baku directed against the Armenian population. The Azerbaijani government, on the other hand, seeing that Nagorno-Karabakh’s standard of living was considerably better than elsewhere in the country, directed funds to the development of other regions.
Cultural issues also played a role in Nagorno-Karabakh. Although Armenians were allowed to use and teach their language and preserve their culture, there were several restrictions that caused discontent. E.g., teachers were not allowed to study in Armenia. Nor was it allowed to receive Armenian language television from Armenia. Over the years, a strong sentiment developed among Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh that their ties with Armenia were cut and their cultural development restraint by Azeri officials in Baku.
Moreover, there was a demographic factor that contributed to the growing tensions. There was a perception among Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh that they were losing ground. In fact, the share of the Azeri minority in the enclave was growing, from merely 5.6 % in the 1920s to almost one quarter in the late 1980s. In the same period, the absolute number of Armenians in the enclave actually declined. In the late 1980s, many Armenians, therefore, feared losing their majority status within the foreseeable future and it not least was for this reason that the issue of reunification was put on the agenda by Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh and also the Armenian Republic.
In the light of these dynamics, Armenian protests on the issue of Nagorno-Karabakh increased significantly after 1985. In August 1987, the Armenian academy of sciences sent a petition with several hundreds of thousands of signatures to Moscow, demanding the unification of Nagorno-Karabakh and the Azeri enclave Nakhjivan with Armenia.
First clashes occurred in October 1987 between Armenians and Azerbaijan authorities in Chardakhli, a village in Azerbaijan mainly inhabited by Armenians. The Armenian majority of the village had opposed the appointment of an Azeri official, which led in turn to a crackdown against the Armenians by local party organs. The events triggered protests in Armenia and the Azeri minority in Armenia had to face increasing discrimination and harassment. Azeri villages were attacked and many Azeris flew across the border to Azerbaijan.
In mid-February 1988, several hundred Armenians began to stage protests in the predominantly Armenian town of Stepanakert in Nagorno-Karabakh. Their claim was the unification of Nagorno-Karabakh with Armenia and their slogan of the Armenian movement was “miatsum” (Armenian for unification). Mass demonstrations in favor of unification were also held in the Armenian capital Yerevan. Azeri inhabitants of Shusha, an Azeri town neighboring Stepanarket, rallied for counter-protests that added to the growing tensions between Armenians and Azeris. Also in Baku, a demonstration proclaiming Nagorno-Karabakh an integral part of Azerbaijan took place on 19 February 1988. There was, however, no organizational backup as Azerbaijan’s political and intellectual elite at that point was hardly taking any interest in the Armenian minority in Azerbaijan in general and in Nagorno-Karabakh in particular.
On 20 February 1988, the Soviet of the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Region of Azerbaijan issued the resolution “On the Reunification of Nagorno-Karabakh with Armenia”, calling on Moscow to change the status of Nagorno-Karabakh by leaving Azerbaijan and joining Soviet Armenia. Moscow rejected the demands to change the status of the Autonomous Oblast – given the numerous potential territorial conflicts in the Soviet Union the central government did not want to set a precedent. In an effort to prevent further escalations, delegations were sent to Nagorno-Karabakh and Azerbaijan and political and economic improvements were offered.
Nevertheless, violence escalated and clashes between Armenians and Azeris occurred in late February 1988. On 27 February, two Azeris were reported dead, an event that triggered a wave of violence in the town of Sumgait. An Azeri demonstration turned violent and mobs attacked Armenian inhabitants, allegedly killing up to 29 and injuring several hundreds. 14 000 Armenians living in Sumgait left the city after the events, as did thousands of the 350 000 Armenians living in other areas of Azerbaijan. The origins of the violence in Sumgait remain unclear. But the failure of the authorities to address the events in Sumgait, e.g. by an official investigation, increased suspicion and mistrust between Armenians and Azeris. Especially Armenians saw the events in Sumgait as a pogrom against their people. Moscow remained inactive and Armenians increasingly perceived the government in Moscow anti-Armenian and ignorant towards their grievances.
The escalation in Nagorno-Karabakh continued during May 1988. A proposed compromise to upgrade the status of Nagorno-Karabakh to an Autonomous Republic was not accepted due to the increasing radicalization on both sides. Nationalist sentiments were further nourished by the new leadership in both Armenia and Azerbaijan. In June, the Armenian Supreme Soviet voted to make Nagorno-Karabakh an integral part of Armenia. The Azerbaijan Supreme Soviet quickly responded with a resolution rejecting the demands. Within Nagorno-Karabakh, Armenians used the fact that they outnumbered the Azeri minority. Buses traveling to and from Azeri towns were stoned by Armenians, Azeri workers were fired and Azerbaijani herders were blocked when trying to bring sheep home at the end of the summer. Azerbaijan, on the other hand, imposed a blockade of roads, railways and the airport, severely affecting the economy in the enclave. In September 1988, violence reached a new level when Azeris attacked Soviet soldiers and Armenians. Subsequently, hundreds of Armenians attacked the Azeri village of Khojali. Eventually, Moscow declared a state of emergency and deployed troops to Nagorno-Karabakh and several areas in Armenia.
Nevertheless, the situation aggravated considerably in 1989. In January, Mikhail Gorbachev put Nagorno-Karabakh under the control of a special administrative committee. However, in the wake of other nationalist uprisings in the Caucasus, both sides became increasingly radical in their tactics. While both sides previously had only used primitive hunting weapons, which was a major reason for the low casualty figures, weapons became available more easily during 1989. The tactics changed as well and kidnappings and bomb attacks on infrastructure became more common. Strikes were held in Nagorno-Karabakh during spring 1989 and violence erupted throughout the summer in the enclave as well as between Azeris and Armenians in Azerbaijan and Armenia. Within Azerbaijan, the Azerbaijan Popular Front (APF) was gaining support and influence although the government refused to recognize the movement. Yet, APF gave a clear proof of its influence when it organise a railway blockade that almost cut off Armenia from the Soviet Union. In January 1990, violent clashes between Armenians and Azeris occurred in several villages in Azerbaijan. After protests of APF demanding the secession of Azerbaijan from the Soviet Union, anti-Armenian violence also occurred in Baku. As escalation continued, Moscow on 15 January declared a state of emergency for Azerbaijan and deployed military troops; a move that was opposed by the Azerbaijani government that now adopted the demands of APF and threatened to secede. In late January, Moscow’s Special Representative left Nagorno-Karabakh, thereby leaving the enclave without an administration. According to some sources, the death toll for January alone was close to 200, however, it is difficult to assess how many people died in the communal violence. As violence continued throughout 1990, the conflict increasingly began to bear a resemblance to guerrilla warfare. More advanced weaponry, often stolen from Soviet military bases and even including armored vehicles and helicopters, was used and in addition to communal violence, militant groups and rival bands formed. Moreover, cross-border raids also increased the risk for an armed confrontation between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
Violence between the two groups continued sporadically also in the following year, prior to the disintegration of the Soviet Union and the independence of Armenia and Azerbaijan. However, the pattern of violence is even more unclear for 1991, including shootings and ambushes against Azeri and Armenian civilians by unknown perpetrators.
Tensions between Azerisand Armenians persisted also after Azerbaijan achieved independence in late 1991. The struggle concerning the status of Nagorno-Karabakh eventually turned into an intrastate conflict between the Government of Azerbaijan and the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh (also known as Artsakh Republic). The Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh was fighting for independence from Azerbaijan after Armenia’s government had stepped back from previous claims of unification. For more information on the conflict after Azerbaijan’s independence, see the state-based conflict over territory in Azerbaijan in the database.
The non-state conflict between Armenians and Azeris is first included in UCDP data in 1989, when clashes resulted in over 25 battle-related deaths.
