When Azerbaijan launched an offensive in the Fall of 2020 to retake the disputed territory of Nagorno-Karabagh from Armenia, the United States, NATO, and the European Union played no role in ending the conflict. All that came from Brussels and Washington were pious statements about regrettable civilian casualties and the need for a peaceful solution.
Intervention to end the fighting was left to Russia. After Azerbaijan had reconquered much of the territory, Russia imposed an armistice agreement backed by Russian peacekeepers. Under this agreement, Armenia handed back more Azerbaijani territory outside Nagorno-Karabagh itself; with a Russian peacekeeping force now guaranteeing the security and de facto continued independence of the remainder of Armenian Nagorno-Karabagh. At the same time, Russia’s defensive alliance with Armenia, and the presence of Russian forces in that country, guarantees the settlement against any attempt by Turkey to intervene on the side of Azerbaijan. Läs artikel