Nagorno-Karabakh: renewed tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the lack of gas

Photo dated November 25, 2020, an Armenian soldier stands guard in the separatist region of Nagorno-Karabakh on a border with the Kalbajar district handed over to Azerbaijan.

AP - Sergei Grits

Text by: RFI Follow

2 mins

The former Soviet space is plagued by multiple tensions.

The tone is rising again in Nagorno-Karabakh, in the South Caucasus, where Armenia accuses Azerbaijan of depriving the population of gas. 

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With our correspondent in the region

,

In addition to the war in Ukraine, in the South Caucasus, in Nagorno-Karabakh, a secessionist Azerbaijani region populated by Armenians which was the subject of

,

 for two weeks.

Azerbaijan, which regained control of a large part of the territories around Nagorno-Karabakh at the end of this conflict which left more than 6,500 dead, is accused by the Armenian side of preventing the local population from having some gas.

A humanitarian crisis is looming as temperatures in the mountain province are often well below zero at the end of winter.

The possibly more than 100,000 residents of Nagorno-Karabakh have been without gas since March 8.

Cold and snowfall

The Armenian side, both Yerevan and the 

authorities of the secessionist province, accuse Azerbaijan of being responsible for it or at least of having prevented the technical teams from repairing the only gas pipeline which supplies Nagorno-Karabakh, after that it was damaged by an accident.

The tube comes from Armenia and passes through a district controlled since the end of 2020 by Azerbaijani forces.

The gas finally returned on Saturday March 19, before being cut off again two days later.

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A second cut which, according to the Armenian side, proves Baku's willingness to put pressure on it, in a context where the Azerbaijanis would try to push their pawns on the ground, while the Russian diplomats and their so

" contingent are less active at the moment, because of the war in Ukraine.

The cold and the heavy snowfalls that the region has experienced force the inhabitants to resort more to electricity, which is more expensive, or to have gas cylinders delivered as best they can.

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• Azerbaijan

• Armenia

• Energies

• Russia

• Ukraine

• Nagorno-Karabakh