September 2022 Armenia–Azerbaijan clashes
On 12 September 2022, a series of clashes erupted between Armenian and Azerbaijani troops along the Armenia–Azerbaijan border, marking a major escalation in the current border crisis between Armenia–Azerbaijan and resulting in nearly 300 deaths and dozens of injuries on both sides by 14 September. A number of human rights organizations and governments – including the United States, European Parliament, Canada, France, Uruguay, Cyprus – stated that Azerbaijan had launched an attack on positions inside the Republic of Armenia.
| September 2022 Armenia–Azerbaijan clashes | |||||||||
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| Part of the Armenia–Azerbaijan border crisis | |||||||||
A map of Azerbaijani strikes on the territory of Armenia between 12-13 September 2022. At least 23 localities were hit. | |||||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||||
| Azerbaijan | Armenia | ||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
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Ilham Aliyev (President, Commander-in-Chief) Zakir Hasanov (Minister of Defence) |
Nikol Pashinyan (Prime Minister, Commander-in-Chief) Suren Papikyan (Minister of Defence) Edvard Asryan (Chief of the General Staff) | ||||||||
| Units involved | |||||||||
| Azerbaijani Armed Forces | Armed Forces of Armenia | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
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Per Azerbaijan: Armenian claim: 431 servicemen killed |
Per Armenia: Azerbaijani claim:
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4 Armenian civilians killed and 2 missing 7 Armenian and 3 Azerbaijani civilians injured | |||||||||
Azerbaijani forces attacked military and civilian positions in Vardenis, Goris, Sotk, Jermuk, and other cities with artillery, drones, and heavy weapons. Azerbaijan claimed that Armenian forces had staged "large-scale subversive acts" using "saboteurs" who planted landmines, an allegation the government spread during the days following the invasion and also echoed by Azerbaijan's ally Turkey. Various journalists, politicians, and political analysts scrutinized these allegations and considered them unfounded or unverifiable.
The fighting ended with Azerbaijani troops taking control of strategic positions deep inside Armenia, with at least 7600 civilians displaced from Armenian provinces. Russia said on 13 September that it had brokered a ceasefire, but both sides confirmed it was broken minutes after coming into effect. On 14 September, Armenia and Azerbaijan brokered a new ceasefire. Armenia requested that the CSTO provide military support; however, the military alliance refused to provide support. The clashes erupted shortly after Russia suffered serious setbacks in the Kharkiv counteroffensive during the invasion of Ukraine, weakening its force projection in the Caucasus.
Following a meeting between leaders of Azerbaijan and Armenia at the invitation of the President of France, and the President of the European Council, an EU civilian monitoring mission consisting of forty people was deployed on the Armenian side of the border (Azerbaijan did not grant access to its side) and an OSCE assessment mission will be sent to Armenia.