Page 15 - KDK

The Report on Human Rights Violations Committed by the
14 Armenian Armed Forces during Azerbaijan & Armenia War

3. THE CONFLICT OF

NAGORNO-KARABAKH

Lying between Kura and Aras rivers, Karabakh is located in the east part of Lake
Sevan and extends in the area of 18.000 km². Nagorno-Karabakh is situated in
the northern part around a mountainous part occupying 4.388 km² of this area.
It is a small isolated land that has been an issue between Armenia and Azerbaijan
since 1988 and ended up in violence and war between the two countries.

Nagorno-Karabakh has a long historical past which had harboured many
civilizations. The land was first ruled by the Christian Albans followed by the
Arabs, Mongolians, Iran, which then was being ruled by a Turkish origin Safavid
Dynasty and eventually by the Turks. The name Karabakh comes from a mixture
of Turkish and Persian languages. Beginning from the XI. century until the XV.
century, the region was ruled by the Seljuks and then by various other Turkmen
lords. These Turkmen lords founded various khanates amongst which were Ganja,
Revan, Sheki, Baku, Quba, Derbent, Nakhchivan and Karabakh. The capital
of Karabakh Khanate founded in 1747 was Shusha. In time, all the khanates,
including Karabakh Khanate in 1805, came under the domination of Russian
Tsardom. Subsequently, following the treaties made between both Persian and
Ottoman Empires with Russia, the right of Armenians to emigrate from both
countries to Russian soil was recognized and about 130.000 Armenians from Persia
and Ottoman lands emigrated to today’s Armenian borders and to Karabakh.
Also, during the First World War a considerable number of Armenians emigrated
to the Russian soils.

Armenians insisted on Nakhchivan, Nagorno-Karabakh and Zangezur regions to be
annexed to Armenia. However, in line with the pact of 1920 with Armenia and Soviyet
Russia left Zangezur to Armenia but refused to comply with the other Armenian
demands. Nevertheless, Armenia insisted its claims on Nagorno-Karabakh 1
During the rule of Josef Stalin, in 1921, USSR decided to affiliate Nagorno-
Karabakh as an autonomous region to Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic and
in 1923 it was annexed to Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic. With the 1936
1 Azer C., Yukarı Karabağ Sorunu ve Minsk Grubu, Ermeni Arastırrmaları, 2013, Sayı 44