Armenia-Azerbaijan: report alongside Armenians enrolled in militias

Published on: 09/18/2022 – 08:22Modified on: 09/18/2022 – 08:23 Despite a ceasefire concluded Wednesday evening under the aegis of Russia, the tension between Armenia and Azerbaijan continues to cause concern. The Armenian population fears that the fighting will resume, on a larger scale. Many civilians enroll in paramilitary groups to go to the front. Reportage. The ceasefire concluded on the evening of Wednesday September 14 between Yerevan and Baku is holding but remains fragile, after the deadly border clashes which opposed the forces of the two former Soviet republics of the Caucasus at the beginning of the week around the enclave of Upper -Karabakh. In Armenia, the government of Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian, has been widely criticized since its defeat in the Nagorno Karabakh war in 2020, for failing to modernize and strengthen its army. And the tension between the two Caucasian republics continues to spark the ‘worry. The Armenian population fears that the fighting will resume on a larger scale.”No military experience”Since the Azerbaijani offensive of September 13, Armenian civilians without any military training are more and more likely to want to train to defend their country against Azerbaijan. Most are supervised by the largest paramilitary group in the country called VOMA. Aram, 18, is waiting for one thing: to be sent to the front. “We are not afraid. You see all these people, they are ready. If I can, I will go right away. Give me a gun,” he explains, adding that the war “has been going on for decades. and it will go on for decades. It will never end.”The combat group to which it belongs is waiting for the green light from the Armenian Ministry of Defense to move towards the border, where the ceasefire remains fragile.Vaghenak Vartan, instructor , wants to be cautious. “We want to test their ability to oppose the enemy because many of them have no military experience.” A fragile ceasefire The two countries, which reject responsibility for these new fights, warned that these tolls were likely to increase. to the 2020 conflict, by Armenians.Armenia accuses Azerbaijan of having attacked and seized localities even on its territory, beyond Nagorno-Karabakh, this week. Azerbaijan claims to have retaliated to Armenian “provocations”. A Moscow-brokered ceasefire ended the fighting on Wednesday evening but the situation at the border remains tense, Nikol Pashinyan said on Friday .