The state has set up three “voluntary” funds for Azerbaijanis to cover post-war needs. But widespread reports suggest that people are being forced to contribute.
The appearance of the self-defense units is the second time this year that civil society has been forced to hold the line. Where the state repeatedly fails to live up to its obligations, volunteers step in.
Some hard talk from the Russian foreign minister has led to recriminations in Yerevan and the prospect of Azerbaijan’s foreign minister getting sacked.