Analysts point to political aspect of Armenian-Azerbaijani border conflict

If Russian peacemakers are placed on Armenian-Azerbaijani border, the parties may drag Russia into a conflict to be used against each other, the Russian military analysts interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot" believe.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on May 27, Nikol Pashinyan, the Acting Prime Minister of Armenia, stated that Armenia and Azerbaijan should simultaneously withdraw their troops from the border and let international observers to come there. On May 28, the European Union (EU) supported Pashinyan's idea of placing observers on the border with Azerbaijan.

According to Shair Ramaldanov, an Azerbaijani military expert, the Armenia's active objections to what is happening on the Azerbaijani border are born by the difficult post-war situation and the upcoming elections in the country.

The expert has added that in Armenia, the current situation on the border and a possible demarcation thereof are a subject of political speculations. "And each political grouping, which is striving for power, interprets this situation in its own way; and there is dragging, one might say, of 'a blanket' over itself – who will pull more," the analyst has explained.

The opinion that the situation on the Azerbaijani border is being used by Armenia for political purposes was also expressed by Pavel Felgengauer, a Russian military analyst. "There is an obvious political problem, which has to do with the fact that Armenia, in general, is trying, if possible, to drag Russia into a confrontation with Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan wants to occupy the territory that it considers to be its own, but at the same time it does not want to confront with Russia," he told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

Therefore, there are attempts from the Armenian side to present the case that Azerbaijan is encroaching on Armenian territory, the analyst has added. Meanwhile, in his opinion, Russia absolutely does not need and does not want to get involved in this conflict.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on May 29, 2021 at 03:05 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.