Alexandre Bagdassarian

On the Armenian side of the enclave disputed by Armenia and Azerbaijan, the isolation of the inhabitants is intensifying as Azeri operations are cutting into their borders. As one heads toward the border with Azerbaijan, the mountainous heights of the Syunik region reveal a multitude of intersecting roads. On the other side of the valley are the territories controlled by Baku since the end of the war in 2020, and, in the middle of them like an island, Nagorno-Karabakh remained under Armenian control. The two countries are fighting over the mountainous enclave, which has been self-proclaimed independent since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991. While the only road linking it to the rest of the Armenian territory has been blocked by Azerbaijan since December, the situation has become even more critical since the authorities in Baku set up a checkpoint on April 23 at the beginning of the new route built by Armenia to bypass the blockade.

Reportage made for Liberation in April 2023 along the Armenian-Azeri borders.
Text by Blandine Lavignon (Libération)