2008 Mardakert skirmishes
Encyclopedia
The 2008 Mardakert skirmishes began on March 4 after the 2008 Armenian election protests. It involved the heaviest fighting between ethnic Armenian
and Azerbaijani forces over the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh
since the 1994 ceasefire
after the Nagorno-Karabakh War
.
Armenian sources accused Azerbaijan of trying to take advantage of ongoing unrest in Armenia. Azerbaijani sources blamed Armenia, claiming that the Armenian government was trying to divert attention from internal tensions in Armenia.
Following the incident, on March 14 the United Nations General Assembly
by a recorded vote of 39 in favour to 7 against adopted Resolution 62/243
, demanding the immediate withdrawal of all Armenian forces from the occupied territories of Azerbaijan.
, Armenians in the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast
and Azeris were involved in the Nagorno-Karabakh War
from February 1988 to May 1994. As the war progressed, the former Soviet republics of Armenia and Azerbaijan became enveloped in a protracted, undeclared war as Azerbaijan attempted to curb the secession
ist movement in Nagorno-Karabakh
. The enclave's parliament
voted on February 20, 1988, to unify with Armenia, and the vast majority of the Karabakh population voted in favor of independence in a referendum. The demand to unify with Armenia, which proliferated in the late 1980s, began in a relatively peaceful manner; however, in the following months, as the Soviet Union
's disintegration neared, it gradually grew into an increasingly violent conflict between the two ethnic groups, resulting in claims of ethnic cleansing
by all sides.
The war was the most destructive ethnic conflict in both terms of lives and property that emerged after the Soviet Union collapsed in December 1991. The declaration of independence was the final result of a "long-standing resentment in the Armenian community of Nagorno Karabakh against serious limitations of its cultural and religious freedom by central Soviet and Azerbaijani authorities," but more importantly, as a territorial conflict regarding the land.
As Azerbaijan declared its independence from the Soviet Union and removed the powers held by the enclave's government, the Armenian majority voted to secede from Azerbaijan, and in the process proclaimed the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh.
Full-scale fighting erupted in the late winter of 1992. International mediation by several groups including Europe's OSCE failed to bring an end resolution that both sides could work with. In the spring of 1993, Armenian forces captured regions outside the enclave itself, threatening the involvement of other countries in the region. By the cease fire in 1994, the Armenians were in full control of not only the enclave but also approximately 9% of Azerbaijan's territory outside the enclave, which they still control. As many as 230,000 Armenians from Azerbaijan and 800,000 Azeris from Armenia and Karabakh have been displaced as a result of the conflict. A Russia
n-brokered cease fire was signed in May 1994 and peace talks, mediated by the OSCE Minsk Group
, have been held ever since by Armenia and Azerbaijan. The ceasefire is self-monitored by the armed forces of the now de facto
independent Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh and by Azerbaijan. Violations of the cease fire in the form of sporadic shooting incidents have occurred, but the cease fire has largely held.
, there were a series of mass protests in Yerevan
, Armenia alleging electoral fraud. Initially these protests were peaceful though unauthorized by government. They began on February 20 and lasted for 10-days. Despite the urging of the government to stop the unauthorized demonstrations, the protests continued till March 1. On the morning of March 1, police and army troops dispersed the 700-1,000 persons who remained overnight. At noon on March 1, over ten thousand demonstrators held a protest at the French embassy in Yerevan and over the evening, clashes broke out between protestors and law enforcement. A 20-day state of emergency
, including a censure on free press, was declared by the incumbent
President
Robert Kocharyan. On March 2, the Armenian Army was arrived to with armoured personnel carriers.
Up to 9 people died in clashes between police and protesters: one police officer and eight civilians. Sixteen officers were hospitalized with bullet wounds. On March 4, 2008, the OSCE issued a press release citing the ban on independent news coverage and censorship temporarily imposed by Armenian authorities as contrary to OSCE commitments.
, Azerbaijan's parliament voted to withdraw a 33-strong Azeri peacekeeping team that has been serving there under NATO command since 1999, as a part of Turkish peacekeeping mission. Speaking on March 4, Azerbaijan's president Ilham Aliyev
said that Kosovo's independence is "emboldening Armenian separatists in Nagorno-Karabakh", and that his country was ready to take it back by force. Prior to the skirmishes, Ilham Aliyev had insisted on numerous occasions that his country was ready to re-take the region by force, and had been buying the military hardware and ammunition to do so. Aliyev nevertheless expressed hope that Azerbaijan's growing military could nudge talks towards a diplomatic breakthrough: "A time will come when the Armenians will agree to that (settlement)," he said.
district of Azerbaijan. In the resulting battle, 8 Azeri servicemen and 12 Armenian servicemen were killed, and 4 Armenian servicemen were wounded.
On March 7, 2008 Nagorno-Karabakh's Defacto news agency reports a concentration Azerbaijani troops at the contact line where the prior ceasefire violation occurred. On March 8–9 another exchange of gunfire occurred at the contact line near Agdam
. Azerbaijani Defense Ministry spokesman Eldar Sabiroglu said two Azerbaijani civilians were killed and two wounded in the shooting overnight on March 8, in the Agdam region. Sabiroglu claimed that additional small arms gunfire between Armenian and Azeri troops occurred on March 9, killing one Azerbaijani soldier and injuring another. He also claimed that an Armenian soldier was also killed which Nagorno-Karabakh's defense minister, Lt. Col. Senor Asratian, denied.
Finland - Finnish foreign minister and OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Ilkka Kanerva
, urged everyone concerned to “exercise maximum restraint, and observe the terms of the ceasefire".
United States - State Department spokesman Tom Casey
told reporters that the US was concerned about the incident, which only served to underline the need for a negotiated settlement.
Russia - A statement released by the Russian Foreign Ministry said that Russia is seriously concerned about the military clashes in the northwest Nagorno-Karabakh region in Azerbaijan. It said the clashes would by no means be allowed to escalate into large-scale combat and spill over into neighboring regions.
OSCE Minsk Group
- French
, Russian and U.S. co-chairs said the conflicting parties should “restore confidence along the Line of Contact and desist from any further confrontations, escalation of violence or warmongering rhetoric.” They also called on Baku
and Yerevan
to “redouble their efforts to endorse the Basic Principles for the peaceful resolution of the conflict presented to the sides on the margins of the Madrid OSCE Ministerial in November 2007, and to begin as soon as possible the process of drafting a peace agreement on this basis.”
Nagorno-Karabakh Defense Army
The Nagorno-Karabakh Republic Defense Army is the formal defense force of the unrecognized but de-facto independent Nagorno-Karabakh Republic...
and Azerbaijani forces over the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh
Nagorno-Karabakh
Nagorno-Karabakh is a landlocked region in the South Caucasus, lying between Lower Karabakh and Zangezur and covering the southeastern range of the Lesser Caucasus mountains...
since the 1994 ceasefire
Bishkek Protocol
Bishkek Protocol is a provisional ceasefire agreement, signed by representatives of Republic of Armenia , unrecognized Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh , Republic of Azerbaijan and Russia's representative to the CSCE Minsk Group Vladimir Kazimirov on May 5, 1994...
after the Nagorno-Karabakh War
Nagorno-Karabakh War
The Nagorno-Karabakh War was an armed conflict that took place from February 1988 to May 1994, in the small enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh in southwestern Azerbaijan, between the majority ethnic Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh backed by the Republic of Armenia, and the Republic of Azerbaijan...
.
Armenian sources accused Azerbaijan of trying to take advantage of ongoing unrest in Armenia. Azerbaijani sources blamed Armenia, claiming that the Armenian government was trying to divert attention from internal tensions in Armenia.
Following the incident, on March 14 the United Nations General Assembly
United Nations General Assembly
For two articles dealing with membership in the General Assembly, see:* General Assembly members* General Assembly observersThe United Nations General Assembly is one of the five principal organs of the United Nations and the only one in which all member nations have equal representation...
by a recorded vote of 39 in favour to 7 against adopted Resolution 62/243
United Nations General Assembly Resolution 62/243
United Nations General Assembly Resolution 62/243, titled "The Situation in the Occupied Territories of Azerbaijan", is a resolution of the United Nations General Assembly about the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh, which was adopted on March 14, 2008 at the 62nd session of the General Assembly...
, demanding the immediate withdrawal of all Armenian forces from the occupied territories of Azerbaijan.
Nagorno-Karabakh War
During and shortly after the dissolution of the Soviet UnionDissolution of the Soviet Union
The dissolution of the Soviet Union was the disintegration of the federal political structures and central government of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , resulting in the independence of all fifteen republics of the Soviet Union between March 11, 1990 and December 25, 1991...
, Armenians in the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast
Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast
The Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast was an autonomous oblast within the borders of the Azerbaijan SSR, mostly inhabited by ethnic Armenians and created on July 7, 1923. According to Karl R. DeRouen it was created as an enclave so that a narrow strip of land would separate it from Armenia proper....
and Azeris were involved in the Nagorno-Karabakh War
Nagorno-Karabakh War
The Nagorno-Karabakh War was an armed conflict that took place from February 1988 to May 1994, in the small enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh in southwestern Azerbaijan, between the majority ethnic Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh backed by the Republic of Armenia, and the Republic of Azerbaijan...
from February 1988 to May 1994. As the war progressed, the former Soviet republics of Armenia and Azerbaijan became enveloped in a protracted, undeclared war as Azerbaijan attempted to curb the secession
Secession
Secession is the act of withdrawing from an organization, union, or especially a political entity. Threats of secession also can be a strategy for achieving more limited goals.-Secession theory:...
ist movement in Nagorno-Karabakh
Nagorno-Karabakh
Nagorno-Karabakh is a landlocked region in the South Caucasus, lying between Lower Karabakh and Zangezur and covering the southeastern range of the Lesser Caucasus mountains...
. The enclave's parliament
Parliament
A parliament is a legislature, especially in those countries whose system of government is based on the Westminster system modeled after that of the United Kingdom. The name is derived from the French , the action of parler : a parlement is a discussion. The term came to mean a meeting at which...
voted on February 20, 1988, to unify with Armenia, and the vast majority of the Karabakh population voted in favor of independence in a referendum. The demand to unify with Armenia, which proliferated in the late 1980s, began in a relatively peaceful manner; however, in the following months, as the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
's disintegration neared, it gradually grew into an increasingly violent conflict between the two ethnic groups, resulting in claims of ethnic cleansing
Ethnic cleansing
Ethnic cleansing is a purposeful policy designed by one ethnic or religious group to remove by violent and terror-inspiring means the civilian population of another ethnic orreligious group from certain geographic areas....
by all sides.
The war was the most destructive ethnic conflict in both terms of lives and property that emerged after the Soviet Union collapsed in December 1991. The declaration of independence was the final result of a "long-standing resentment in the Armenian community of Nagorno Karabakh against serious limitations of its cultural and religious freedom by central Soviet and Azerbaijani authorities," but more importantly, as a territorial conflict regarding the land.
As Azerbaijan declared its independence from the Soviet Union and removed the powers held by the enclave's government, the Armenian majority voted to secede from Azerbaijan, and in the process proclaimed the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh.
Full-scale fighting erupted in the late winter of 1992. International mediation by several groups including Europe's OSCE failed to bring an end resolution that both sides could work with. In the spring of 1993, Armenian forces captured regions outside the enclave itself, threatening the involvement of other countries in the region. By the cease fire in 1994, the Armenians were in full control of not only the enclave but also approximately 9% of Azerbaijan's territory outside the enclave, which they still control. As many as 230,000 Armenians from Azerbaijan and 800,000 Azeris from Armenia and Karabakh have been displaced as a result of the conflict. A Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n-brokered cease fire was signed in May 1994 and peace talks, mediated by the OSCE Minsk Group
OSCE Minsk Group
The OSCE Minsk Group was created in 1992 by the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe to encourage a peaceful, negotiated resolution to the conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia over Nagorno-Karabakh.-Founding and members:The Helsinki Additional Meeting of the CSCE Council on 24 March...
, have been held ever since by Armenia and Azerbaijan. The ceasefire is self-monitored by the armed forces of the now de facto
De facto
De facto is a Latin expression that means "concerning fact." In law, it often means "in practice but not necessarily ordained by law" or "in practice or actuality, but not officially established." It is commonly used in contrast to de jure when referring to matters of law, governance, or...
independent Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh and by Azerbaijan. Violations of the cease fire in the form of sporadic shooting incidents have occurred, but the cease fire has largely held.
2008 Armenian presidential election protests
Following the Armenian Presidential Election of 2008Armenian presidential election, 2008
A presidential election was held in Armenia on 19 February 2008. Prime Minister of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan won the election in the first round according to official results, but this is disputed by former President Levon Ter-Petrossian, who officially placed second.The candidacy of Sargsyan was...
, there were a series of mass protests in Yerevan
Yerevan
Yerevan is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's oldest continuously-inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerevan is the administrative, cultural, and industrial center of the country...
, Armenia alleging electoral fraud. Initially these protests were peaceful though unauthorized by government. They began on February 20 and lasted for 10-days. Despite the urging of the government to stop the unauthorized demonstrations, the protests continued till March 1. On the morning of March 1, police and army troops dispersed the 700-1,000 persons who remained overnight. At noon on March 1, over ten thousand demonstrators held a protest at the French embassy in Yerevan and over the evening, clashes broke out between protestors and law enforcement. A 20-day state of emergency
State of emergency
A state of emergency is a governmental declaration that may suspend some normal functions of the executive, legislative and judicial powers, alert citizens to change their normal behaviours, or order government agencies to implement emergency preparedness plans. It can also be used as a rationale...
, including a censure on free press, was declared by the incumbent
Incumbent
The incumbent, in politics, is the existing holder of a political office. This term is usually used in reference to elections, in which races can often be defined as being between an incumbent and non-incumbent. For example, in the 2004 United States presidential election, George W...
President
President
A president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...
Robert Kocharyan. On March 2, the Armenian Army was arrived to with armoured personnel carriers.
Up to 9 people died in clashes between police and protesters: one police officer and eight civilians. Sixteen officers were hospitalized with bullet wounds. On March 4, 2008, the OSCE issued a press release citing the ban on independent news coverage and censorship temporarily imposed by Armenian authorities as contrary to OSCE commitments.
Prelude
In a sign of disapproval after the 2008 Kosovo declaration of independence2008 Kosovo declaration of independence
The 2008 Kosovo declaration of independence was adopted on 17 February 2008 by individual members of the Assembly of Kosovo acting in personal capacity and not binding to the Assembly itself...
, Azerbaijan's parliament voted to withdraw a 33-strong Azeri peacekeeping team that has been serving there under NATO command since 1999, as a part of Turkish peacekeeping mission. Speaking on March 4, Azerbaijan's president Ilham Aliyev
Ilham Aliyev
Ilham Heydar oglu Aliyev is the President of Azerbaijan since 2003. He also functions as the Chairman of the New Azerbaijan Party and the head of the National Olympic Committee...
said that Kosovo's independence is "emboldening Armenian separatists in Nagorno-Karabakh", and that his country was ready to take it back by force. Prior to the skirmishes, Ilham Aliyev had insisted on numerous occasions that his country was ready to re-take the region by force, and had been buying the military hardware and ammunition to do so. Aliyev nevertheless expressed hope that Azerbaijan's growing military could nudge talks towards a diplomatic breakthrough: "A time will come when the Armenians will agree to that (settlement)," he said.
Armenian version of events
According to the Armenian side, Azerbaijani forces attacked Armenian positions near the village of Levonarkh in the Mardakert Region of north-eastern Nagorno-Karabakh early March 4, 2008. They then briefly seized positions held by Armenian forces, which were later recaptured. The Armenian side also claimed that 8 Azeri servicemen were killed and 7 wounded, with 2 Armenian servicemen wounded, and that the Azeris fled leaving armament on the battlefield. Armenian president Robert Kocharyan also claimed that Azeri troops used heavy artillery in fighting.Azerbaijani version of events
According to the Azerbaijani side, Armenian forces attacked the positions of Azerbaijani army in the TartarTartar (rayon)
Tartar is a rayon of Azerbaijan. Most of it has been under the control of the breakaway Nagorno-Karabakh Republic since the Nagorno-Karabakh War, as part of Martakert Province....
district of Azerbaijan. In the resulting battle, 8 Azeri servicemen and 12 Armenian servicemen were killed, and 4 Armenian servicemen were wounded.
Aftermath
Azerbaijani side announced the names of 4 killed servicemen- Nemat Habibulla oglu Tusayev, born in 1988, recruited by Zagatala region enlistment office in 2007
- Yusif Oruj oglu Gasimov, born in 1988, recruited by Sheki region enlistment office in 2007
- Bahruz Arzu oglu Ismayilov, born in 1988, recruited by Sheki enlistment office in 2006
- Jeyhun Bahaddin oglu Safarov, born in 1978, recruited by Khatai enlistment office in 1996RE
On March 7, 2008 Nagorno-Karabakh's Defacto news agency reports a concentration Azerbaijani troops at the contact line where the prior ceasefire violation occurred. On March 8–9 another exchange of gunfire occurred at the contact line near Agdam
Agdam
Agdam or Ağdam or Aghdam may refer to:*Agdam city, Azerbaijan*Agdam Rayon, Azerbaijan*Ağdam, Khojavend, Azerbaijan*Ağdam, Tovuz, Azerbaijan...
. Azerbaijani Defense Ministry spokesman Eldar Sabiroglu said two Azerbaijani civilians were killed and two wounded in the shooting overnight on March 8, in the Agdam region. Sabiroglu claimed that additional small arms gunfire between Armenian and Azeri troops occurred on March 9, killing one Azerbaijani soldier and injuring another. He also claimed that an Armenian soldier was also killed which Nagorno-Karabakh's defense minister, Lt. Col. Senor Asratian, denied.
Dispute over casualties
The Armenian head of national military investigation institute of the Defense Ministry rejected the Azerbaijani claim about 12 Armenian deaths Meanwhile, the press service of the Azerbaijani Ministry of Defense insisted that the claim by Armenian president about 8 casualties on Azeri side was false because it would be impossible to hide the deaths of four more servicemen in the presence of the media and the public in Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan insisted that 4 Azeri soldiers and 12 Armenian soldiers were killed an 15 Armenian soldiers wounded, while Armenia insists that 8 Azeri soldiers were killed and 7 wounded, and that 2 Armenian soldiers were wounded, with no Armenian fatalities.International reaction
Finland - Finnish foreign minister and OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Ilkka KanervaIlkka Kanerva
Ilkka Armas Mikael Kanerva is a member of the Finnish Parliament. He was born in Lokalahti, now a part of Uusikaupunki in Finland Proper. He was the Minister for Foreign Affairs from 2007 to 2008. He was forced to resign from the position due to a scandal involving hundreds of text messages he...
, urged everyone concerned to “exercise maximum restraint, and observe the terms of the ceasefire".
United States - State Department spokesman Tom CaseyTom Casey (diplomat)
Tom Casey is a U.S. diplomat. He was the Deputy Spokesman and Deputy Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs at the United States Department of State, a position to which he was appointed on 3 July 2006. Immediately prior to this assignment, he served as Director of the Office of Press...
told reporters that the US was concerned about the incident, which only served to underline the need for a negotiated settlement.
Russia - A statement released by the Russian Foreign Ministry said that Russia is seriously concerned about the military clashes in the northwest Nagorno-Karabakh region in Azerbaijan. It said the clashes would by no means be allowed to escalate into large-scale combat and spill over into neighboring regions.OSCE Minsk Group
OSCE Minsk Group
The OSCE Minsk Group was created in 1992 by the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe to encourage a peaceful, negotiated resolution to the conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia over Nagorno-Karabakh.-Founding and members:The Helsinki Additional Meeting of the CSCE Council on 24 March...
- French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Russian and U.S. co-chairs said the conflicting parties should “restore confidence along the Line of Contact and desist from any further confrontations, escalation of violence or warmongering rhetoric.” They also called on Baku
Baku
Baku , sometimes spelled as Baki or Bakou, is the capital and largest city of Azerbaijan, as well as the largest city on the Caspian Sea and of the Caucasus region. It is located on the southern shore of the Absheron Peninsula, which projects into the Caspian Sea. The city consists of two principal...
and Yerevan
Yerevan
Yerevan is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's oldest continuously-inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerevan is the administrative, cultural, and industrial center of the country...
to “redouble their efforts to endorse the Basic Principles for the peaceful resolution of the conflict presented to the sides on the margins of the Madrid OSCE Ministerial in November 2007, and to begin as soon as possible the process of drafting a peace agreement on this basis.”
External links
- Violence breaks out in Nagorno-Karabakh Russia Today TVRussia Today TVRT, previously known as Russia Today, is a global multilingual television news network based in the Russian Federation run by the state-owned state-run RIA Novosti....
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