Ongoing Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict: Paradoxes of Iran Policy

ICBPS- The ongoing Nagorno-Karabakh conflict entered its second week, hundreds of people died. Clashes between Azerbaijan and Armenia escalated amid ongoing tension in the Nagorno-Karabakh region.

Armenia and Azerbaijan have been locked in a border conflict over disputed Nagorno-Karabakh since late last month.   

The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict began on September 27, when Armenian Forces allegedly targeted civilian Azerbaijani settlements and military positions in the region.

More than 220 people have died since the clashes began a week ago.

The current clashes are the worst ever seen since the ceasefire, and two ex-Soviet republics in the Caucasus have been blaming each other.

According to BBC, Azerbaijan’s military says its forces have retaken control of seven villages since last Sunday, while Nagorno-Karabakh says its forces have “improved” their frontline positions.

Since no achievement has been made, Azerbaijan seeks a military intervention as the only way to get out of the crisis.

Azerbaijani army conquered villages of the disputed region as Ankara fully support Baku, and no allies took a principled stance on Armenia. Yerevan has been left alone.

Canada suspended the export of drone components to Turkey, citing reports that they are being operated against Armenia in the Nagorno-Karabakh region.

Turkey is all set to manufacture a drone cargo plane for its army as Ankara is targeting mass production in 2021, said Ismail Demir, the head of Turkey’s Defense Presidency (SSB).

Iran has also given mixed signals about the conflict between its northern neighbours, taking a contradictory position with striking contradiction in responses.

At the beginning of the conflict, as usual, Iran sided with Armenia so that Shiite clerics in Qom condemned Azerbaijan’s intervention.

Tehran immediately changed its policy after Iran’s largest ethnic minority Azerbaijanis took to the streets supporting the Republic of Azerbaijan in its ongoing conflict with Armenia which is likely to concern Ayatollahs.

Northwestern Iranian cities witness rallies, protests in support of Azerbaijan have rocked several cities, including Tehran and Tabriz, where at least 38 people had been reportedly detained in the protests.

Speaking to the Young Journalists Club about the tensions between Azerbaijan and Armenia, Ali Akbar Velayati, Advisor on Foreign Affairs to Khamenei, said: Armenia must withdraw from occupied Azerbaijani lands.

In his speech, Khamenei also said the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh belongs only to the Islamic World.

Although the so-called moderate Hassan Rouhani resists growing pressure from the demonstrators and clergy to support Muslim neighbor Azerbaijan, his cabinet has so far treaded a neutral stand. Rouhani, however, warned Azerbaijan-Armenia conflict could turn into a regional war.

However, Khomeinist regime Propagandist Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov this week stressed the need to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict through diplomatic settlements. — a striking contradiction in responses by the Islamic authorities in Iran.

It does not matter if interventions are in the Persian Gulf region or the Caucasus or the Levant, Iran’s intervention in the countries affairs always poses a threat to the region.

Iran is meddling in the internal affairs of its neighbors by training, founding, and weaponizing militants.

Ayatollahs in Tehran have warned that the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict could flare up into regional war as further casualties among Armenia-backed forces reported.

In a television remark, Rouhani said we do not allow ‘states to send terrorists to our borders under various pretexts. This is the regime that its militants and proxies have been operating throughout the Middle East, and exercised various terror attacks from South America (Argentina) to Europe and the Far East.

Russian President Vladimir Putin also has called for fighting to stop in the Nagorno-Karabakh region.

The region in the Caucasus Mountains of about 1,700 square miles is 30 miles from the Armenian border. Soldiers backed by Armenia also occupy some Azerbaijani territory outside the region.

The Institute of Capacity Building for Political Studies (ICBPS) is a non-governmental research institute focusing on political studies, international security, and international relations.