According to Russian authorities, the Republic of Karabakh will be dissolved on January 1st, 2024.
Russia’s TASS news agency reported on Thursday that Samvel Shahramanyan, the separatist president of the country, has issued a decree to dissolve all government structures in the Republic of Karabakh.
According to this decree, as of January 1st, equivalent to the year 2024, the Republic of Karabakh will be dissolved.
This comes as the separatist leader of Karabakh, on Thursday, after 32 years of unsuccessful efforts to formally recognize this country, signed a decree for the official dissolution of this country and its submission to Azerbaijan.
Azerbaijan’s military offensive last week forced the government of Karabakh to surrender and disband its armed forces, leading to the migration of residents of the mountainous region.
According to reports, more than 66,000 people, half of whom are residents of this country, have crossed the border into Armenia, and some officials believe that the entire population of this region will leave.
Meanwhile, the prominent members of the Karabakh government have also been arrested or surrendered to the Azerbaijani government.
David Babayan, the former spokesperson for the separatist government, who also briefly served as the foreign minister of this country, said he intends to turn himself in to the authorities.
Furthermore, officials of this country have stated that this decision was made based on the priority of ensuring the physical security and vital interests of the people of Karabakh, taking into account the agreements reached with representatives of the Republic of Azerbaijan through the mediation of Russian peacekeeping forces, which guarantee the free, voluntary, and unimpeded passage of Karabakh residents, including military forces that have laid down their arms.
Karabakh is recognized as part of the Republic of Azerbaijan according to international law, but the majority of the population in this region consists of 120,000 Armenians. This region fell out of the control of the Republic of Azerbaijan in the early 1990s during a war and is now set to be dissolved in January 2024.
