The move comes as the fate of the de facto state appears ever more precarious, and it is not clear what Ruben Vardanyan’s wealth, authority, or Moscow connections might mean.
Days before Azerbaijan launched an assault against Armenia, Armenians began using a new, Azerbaijan-constructed road to travel between Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia.
But just as Azerbaijani troops were entering the territory, however, it emerged that the new road that was the purported reason for the handover would not be ready for another week.
A series of ceasefire violations has led to an unprecedented level of criticism, even as the Armenians of Karabakh still see the peacekeepers as their main guarantor of security.
Most who fled the area around Parukh, which four months ago saw some of the sharpest fighting since the war in 2020, have returned. But they say it’s become more dangerous.
The village of Aghavno is supposed to be ceded to Azerbaijan as soon as a new road bypassing it is finished. Many of its Armenian residents say they’re not leaving.
