Main Thesis Circulating in Azerbaijan: Russian Peacekeepers Killed Civilian in Martakert, Expert Says

After the war, Azerbaijan is working along two main theses: the first is to intimidate the Armenian population, and the second is to target the mission of the Russian peacekeepers in Artsakh. This opinion was expressed by Garniq Davtyan, an expert on Azerbaijani affairs, during an interview with Factinfo, commenting on the incident that occurred in Martakert on October 9.

It is important to note that on October 9, a 55-year-old resident of Martakert was killed by enemy sniper fire. The expert pointed out that Azerbaijan is doing everything it can to make the population of Artsakh think that they either must leave the area or live under Azerbaijani control as an ethnic minority.

Azerbaijan is trying to persuade the local population that the peacekeeping mission in Artsakh is fictitious and that it is not there to ensure the peaceful existence of the Artsakh Armenians, but rather is doing nothing of real significance. “Yesterday, I closely followed the developments on Azerbaijani social media regarding this incident. The main thesis circulating was that it was not Azerbaijanis who fired upon the civilian in Martakert, but rather that Russian peacekeepers were responsible for the death,” Davtyan noted.

He added that Azerbaijan's primary goal is to ethnically cleanse the region, and if that does not succeed, they will use various provocations to force residents to live in an atmosphere of fear. In the expert's opinion, the Azerbaijani side will not even attempt to engage in constructive dialogue or present itself as a peace-seeking state.