Faizel Patel – 01/10/2020
An Azeri researcher at TRT World Research Centre in Turkey says the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan dates back hundreds of years after they broke away from the Russian Empire and formed their own state.
Armenia and Azerbaijan have accused one another of firing directly into each other’s territory and rejected pressure to hold peace talks as their conflict over the enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh threatened to descend into all-out war.
Both countries reported firing from the other side across their shared border, well to the west of the breakaway Nagorno-Karabakh region over which fierce fighting broke out between Azeri and ethnic Armenian forces on Sunday.
Speaking to Radio Islam from Istanbul, Azeri researcher Turan Gafarli says the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan branded as Muslims vs Christians has been instigated by Armenia.
“Armenians are not rightful in this case. They occupy the territories of another sovereign country which all United Nations members recognise the territory as province of Azerbaijan. So therefore they are trying to get sympathy from the Christian West and especially from the countries like the US, France or the European countries or Russia that’s showing another Christian minority in revolt, in brackets oppressed by Muslim majority. So, it’s nothing like that.
At the same the President of the International Centre Human Development Tevan Poghosyan also speaking to Radio Islam from Armenia says, Russia is a just a mediator in the conflict.
Poghosyan says there could possibly be a non-military solution to the conflict if both sides come to the table.
“The moment when the sides decide that the life of one soldier is much more higher than the life of the other side or as Azerbaijani using their enemies. Until the life of one Azerbaijani soldier would not be higher than the life of an Armenian soldier, they would never come easily to the table of negotiation.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin and France’s Emmanuel Macron have called for an immediate ceasefire between Armenian forces and Azerbaijan, as the official death toll passed 100 and the two sides say they would continue fighting.
The leaders expressed “readiness” to see a statement made on behalf of the co-chairs of the Minsk Group – Russia, France and the United States – that would call for an “immediate” end to fighting and start of talks
So far, Armenia and Azerbaijan have rejected international calls for negotiations with Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev promising his military would keep fighting until Armenian troops withdrew fully from Karabakh
Listen to the interview with Turan Gafarl
Listen to the interview with Tevan Poghosyan
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