VIDEO: 400 People Ready to Go to Shushi to 'Clean' It, Says Semyon Pegov

Semyon Pegov, the author of the WarGonzo project, shared his impressions regarding the war in an interview with Sputnik agency. Speaking specifically about the defense of Shushi, Pegov stated: "As for Shushi, yes, I am stating and insisting that this was more of a political decision, simply because at the time of the signing of the agreement, units of the Artsakh Defense Army continued to remain in Shushi. I will not take responsibility to say that the city was completely under the control of the Artsakh Defense Army; it is hard to claim that, because there were also armed forces of Azerbaijan present there. However, at the time of the signing, there was a battle for the city, and that is an undeniable fact for me. I knew it because first, I was calling the guys on the front line, and second, on the morning of November 9 at 5 AM, when I reached a height about two kilometers from Shushi, there were 400 people ready to go to 'clean' Shushi.

From that position, it was even possible to take pictures showing where the Artsakh Defense Army soldiers were located. There were at least two groups of soldiers, though I will not take responsibility to specify the number, located in the territory of Shushi. This means that Azerbaijan was also not fully controlling the city. Moreover, I am aware that on November 7, when Aliyev announced the capture of Shushi, there were several saboteurs in the city at that moment who had really managed to infiltrate, seize certain points, and open fire on units and vehicles from those points.

Regarding the commanders, I find it hard to name any surnames now; I know that the situation was being fully monitored by the Minister of Defense of Artsakh. I haven’t personally communicated with him, but I was in contact with one of his staff members, and as I understand it, he was also coordinating the operations. The Deputy Minister of Defense was also in Shushi. On November 7, he was definitely in Shushi. From what I know, on November 7, the city was 'cleaned' of snipers. After that, a series of decisions were made which, in my opinion, were more political than military. It is difficult for me to judge and assess the correctness of the decisions made by the leadership of Armenia and Artsakh, because probably only they knew how much reserves were available to continue military operations."

For the full statement, please see the video.