RUSSIA DEPLOYS FIRST PEACEKEEPER TROOPS IN NAGORNO-KARABAKH

Wed 11 November 2020:

First Russian peacekeepers have been deployed to Karabakh conflict zone, hours after Armenia and Azerbaijan agreed to halt fighting over the region and amid signs the ceasefire would hold where others hadn’t.

The Russian military confirmed the first boots on ground on Wednesday with the peacekeepers headed for the so-called Lachin Corridor, the main road leading from Nagorno-Karabakh to Armenia.

The truce came after significant advances by Azerbaijani forces that the Armenian-backed leader of Nagorno-Karabakh said made it impossible for his side to carry on. It was celebrated in Azerbaijan but left Armenians bitter, and many stormed government buildings overnight, demanding Parliament invalidate the agreement.

The two countries have been locked in a conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh for decades, and there were concerns the hostilities could escalate and draw in Turkey, which threw its weight behind Azerbaijan, and Russia, which has a security pact with Armenia.

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