Putin Asks Azerbaijan To Guard Church In Nagorno-Karabakh

Russian peacekeepers stand beside a tank near the Armenian border following the signing of an agreement to end military conflict between Azerbaijanis and ethnic Armenian forces (Photo: Antara)

JAKARTA - Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday, November 14 asked Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev to safeguard Christian holy sites such as churches and monasteries in several Nagorno-Karabakh regions, areas that Azerbaijan succeeded in defending through a ceasefire agreement this week.

Russia brokered the armed conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan and pushed them to sign a ceasefire agreement, Tuesday, November 10. Armenian and Azerbaijani troops have been fighting in Nagorno-Karabakh and surrounding cities for about six weeks.

Nagorno-Karabakh is a region in Azerbaijan which is inhabited by a mostly ethnic Armenian population.

Putin told Aliyev there are a number of churches and monasteries in Nagorno-Karabakh, a mountainous area in the South Caucasus.

"Regarding this, he (Putin) stressed the importance of maintaining security and ensuring that activities in the church can resume normal activities," said the Kremlin.

According to the Kremlin, Aliyev said the request was in accordance with the steps that Azerbaijan was going to take.

Azerbaijan is a country where the majority of the population is Muslim.

Putin, Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan also discussed some practical aspects of the ceasefire agreement, the Kremlin said.

So far, however, it is not clear whether Putin has contacted Aliyev and Pashinyan via separate phone lines.

Under the ceasefire agreement, 2,000 Russian peacekeepers will guard the Nagorno-Karabakh region.

Since the early 1990s, ethnic Armenians have been in control of the military in Nagorno-Karabakh and most of the surrounding areas of Azerbaijan. However, they have lost influence in many areas, including in neighboring cities.