September 28, 2020 - 13:34 AMT
"We’ll see if we can stop it": Trump weighs in on Karabakh violence

U.S. President Donald Trump has weighed in on renewed violence in Nagorno-Karabakh, saying "We’ll see if we can stop it."

Azerbaijan launched a large-scale offensive along the entire contact line in Karabakh (Artsakh) in the morning of September 27, shelling Armenian positions and civilian settlements with large caliber weapons. Both Armenia and Karabakh have introduced martial law and total mobilization of their male population. The Armenian side has reported deaths and injuries both among the civilian population and the military.

“We are looking at it very strongly, I learned about it today and yesterday. We have a lot of good relationships in that area. We’ll see if we can stop it,” Trump said when asked about the new flare-up.

The U.S. Department of State, meanwhile, maintaining that participation in the escalating violence by external parties would be "deeply unhelpful and only exacerbate regional tensions".

Karabakh President Arayik Harutyun said on September 27 that it is not Azerbaijan that is warring against Artsakh, but Turkey. According to him, Azerbaijan is targeting Armenian posts and civilian settlements using Turkish arms and ammunition.