The international think-tank Crisis Group has urged the European Union to facilitate diplomatic efforts and preserve Moscow’s role in conflict resolution, including Karabakh.

The Crisis Group, in an article yesterday, writes:

“In the shadow of Russia’s war in Ukraine, a series of clashes and a subsequent period of quiet have raised both fears about renewed fighting in Nagorno-Karabakh and hopes that diplomacy might still bring the parties closer to peace.”

The think-tank says the EU should work with Armenia and Azerbaijan to develop a format and agenda for further negotiations and “should not neglect engagement with de facto authorities and residents of Nagorno-Karabakh.”

The Crisis Group writes that the Armenians of Karabakh fear a peace deal will mean full Azerbaijani control of the region, thus forcing them to flee.

“Support for these people’s post-war needs will be crucial to sustaining a deal, but it must be carefully managed, as Baku views any engagement with Nagorno-Karabakh’s de facto authorities as undermining its claim to the territory,” the Crisis Group writes.