To Whom It May Concern,
Supplies to the city of Stepanakert of Nagorno-Karabakh are, you may know, often stopped because of the blockade of the land route leading to difficulties for inhabitants to buy food and other goods. A few days ago, according to available sources including the BBC, the Lachin Corridor was blocked by Azerbaijan leading to the cut-off of supplies to Stepanakert. Notably, the only land road that links Armenia and Azerbaijan was also blocked in the past. It was blocked by the Eco-activists of Azerbaijan in December last year causing the near stoppage of supplies of food, medicine and other goods. Thousands of residents rallied in Stepanakert, the largest city of Nagorno-Karabakh, to protest the blockade of the land link.
It is to note that Nagorno-Karabakh has been importing most of its fruits and vegetables from Armenia for decades and the residents of Stepanakert are heavily dependent on the supplies through the land corridor. According to available sources, about 400 tons of food and other goods are delivered to Nagorno-Karabakh every day from Armenia along the Lachin corridor. But due to the blockade, there are now shortages of almost all goods in the market, along with a hindrance to the freedom of movement of inhabitants. No doubt, the blockade for several days or weeks can lead to the intense suffering of more than 100,000 inhabitants and increase the chance of starvation of many inhabitants as was the case in the blockade in December.
Long ethnic and territorial conflicts over the Narogno-Karabakh region between Azerbaijan and Armenia, which fought a six-week war in 2020 over the enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh and surrounding territories and another war in 1991, the controversy over the Lachin corridor and land mining are mainly responsible for the blockade on the highway that has been the only route linking the region to the outside world for three decades. The claim of illegal mining in Karabakh that resulted in sit-ins by Azerbaijan’s environmentalists on the road causing the blockade in December last year is also the immediate cause of the current blockade, though there is a controversy on the environmentalists’ blockade and many believe that they are just a tool for Azerbaijan’s nationalists.
But it is desirable that the supply of food and other goods is kept outside the conflict over the disputed region. This is important for averting the avoidable sufferings of the inhabitants of the city of Stepanakert of the disputed region. It is notable that the 2020 ceasefire agreement between the countries with the mediation of Russia allows the supply of goods through the land route. Also, civilian vehicles deserve to be given permission to move freely to and out of Nagorno-Karabakh, no matter whether they transport supplies or not, and controversy over the corridor and the problem of illegal mining in the enclave need to be resolved.
Amir M Sayem
Chief Editor
Dhaka Opinion Magazine
