copenlu/druid huggingface dataset:
Claim: Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic is a territory of Armenia (Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2018-05-21): As part of the Republic of Azerbaijan, the Nakhichevan Republic is located in South Asia, west of Azerbaijan proper and separated from this main territory by the narrow strip of Armenia. The landmass of Nakhichevan is 5,500 square kilometers, occupying the southern slopes of the Darlagez range and the southwestern slopes of the Zangezur Mountains. The Araz river valley extends between these two ranges. Almost 75 percent of the territory is located at an elevation of 1,000 meters. Gapydjik, located in the Zangezur range, is the highest peak in the region at 3,904 meters. The region is also known for its volcanic domes and its frequent, severe earthquakes. [...] According to legend, Noah's ark is said to have first touched land along the submerged peaks of the Zangezur Mountains before reaching Mount Ararat. The Republic's name is derived from this legend, as "Nakhichevan" is a corruption of Nukkhtchikhan, the colony of Noah. Like the surrounding region, Nakhichevan sits at a strategic crossroads and has been subject to military intervention throughout much of its history. In the mid-eighteenth century, after successive battles for supremacy between Iran and Russia, Nakhichevan came under Russian control, in accordance with the treaty of Turkmanchai in 1828. In 1924 Josef Stalin designated Nakhichevan an autonomous republic, a status it maintains today within Azerbaijan.
Claim: Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic is a territory of Armenia (Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2022-02-25): Insular and isolated, the autonomous republic of Nakhchivan is emerging as one of the world’s most sustainable places. Chances are you’ve never heard of Nakhchivan. Jammed between Armenia, Iran and Turkey on the Transcaucasian plateau, this autonomous republic of Azerbaijan is one of the most isolated outposts of the former Soviet Union and a place few travellers ever visit. [...] In 1988, as Moscow was losing its grip over its constituent republics, war erupted in Nakhchivan’s neighbouring enclave Nagorno-Karabakh in south-western Azerbaijan between ethnic Armenians backed by Armenia and Azerbaijan. As many as 30,000 people died before an unsteady ceasefire was finally struck in 1994. In retaliation, the ethnic Armenian majority controlling the territory closed all railways and roads linking Nakhchivan to the rest of Azerbaijan and the USSR in 1988. Only two small bridges built over the Aras River into Iran and Turkey saved Nakhchivan from starvation and total collapse.
Claim: Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic is a territory of Armenia (Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2022-11-23): Point 9 of the declaration of November 9, 2020 states: "All economic and transport communications in the region should be unblocked. The Republic of Armenia guarantees the safety of transport communication between the western regions of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Autonomous Republic of Nakhichevan in order to organize the smooth movement of citizens, vehicles and cargo in both directions. Control over the transport communication is carried out by the Border Service of the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation. [...] Accordingly, it should be noted that the accusations against Armenia regarding the violation of point 9 of the declaration of November 9, 2020 are completely groundless. In this matter, Armenia has only one obligation, to provide a transport connection between the western regions of Azerbaijan and the Autonomous Republic of Nakhichevan, while no specific route is mentioned in the November 9 declaration or any other statement. The Republic of Armenia has always been ready and is still ready to provide such communication, and for this purpose, the draft decision of the Government of the Republic of Armenia on establishing checkpoints on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border has been put into circulation, and as a result of this decision, Azerbaijan can get a connection with the Autonomous Republic of Nakhichevan through the roads of Armenia. This decision is not made only for one reason: Azerbaijan does not want this route.
Claim: Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic is a territory of Armenia (Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2022-10-13): Throughout this time, there was incremental damage and then demolition of Armenian sites in the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic. Almost every Armenian historical building, church or cemetery in the over 2000 square mile enclave was destroyed. [...] Silent Erasure is a detailed, 269 page study on the elimination of monuments in the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, a landlocked exclave of the Republic of Azerbaijan. Nakhchivan has a very lengthy history of multi-ethnic occupation by both Christian Armenians and Muslim Azeris. The enclave is located to the west of and physically separated from Azerbaijan proper, bordered by Armenia to the east and north, Iran to the southwest, and Turkey to the west. The researchers, with good reason, fear that the elimination of Armenian heritage in Nakhchivan/Nakhichevan will be repeated in Nagorno-Karabakh, once an independent Armenian enclave within Azerbaijan territory known as the Republic of Artsakh.
Claim: Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic is a territory of Armenia (Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2021-11-11): • For the first time in modern history, it will receive a transit land corridor with Azerbaijan – through the territory of Armenia and through the Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic of Azerbaijan. [...] • The ‘Second Karabakh War’. From September 27 to November 10, 2020, the Azerbaijani and Armenian armies fought fierce battles in the Karabakh conflict zone using armored vehicles, artillery and drones. Several thousand people were killed among the military and civilians on both sides. An armistice was declared three times during this time – on October 10, 18 and 26, but each time it was immediately violated. The war was stopped by a trilateral agreement signed on November 10 by Azerbaijan, Armenia and Russia • Karabakh war 1991-1994. Armed conflict between Armenians and Azerbaijanis that took place in 1991-1994 on the territory of the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Region of Azerbaijan and the surrounding regions. Since the signing of the ceasefire in 1994 and until November 2020, the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic has existed as a de facto independent republic, not recognized by any state in the world, including Armenia. The Azerbaijani population left this territory and only ethnic Armenians lived there. Azerbaijan has always considered Karabakh and the territories around it occupied during the war as occupied and demanded their return.
Claim: Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic is a territory of Armenia (Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2023-09-26): After its rapid military advance last week, Azerbaijan is set to establish full sovereignty over Nagorno-Karabakh, the country’s contested mountainous enclave that has been under ethnic Armenian control for three decades. With that dispute nearing a conclusion, Azerbaijan may now move to resolve its next point of contention with Armenia: the completion of the so-called Nakhchivan (or Zangezur) corridor. But unlike Nagorno-Karabakh, a carved-out corridor in Armenia’s south would have serious implications for the region, rewriting the geopolitical map for Iran, Russia, Turkey and potentially even Israel. In 2020, a Moscow-brokered ceasefire agreement ending the 44-day war between Armenia and Azerbaijan in Nagorno-Karabakh guaranteed "the safety of transport links between the western regions of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic." Control over the land link would be managed by Armenian security forces as well as "the bodies of the Border Guard Service of the FSB of Russia."
Claim: Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic is a territory of Armenia (Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2022-10-19): Azerbaijan’s interest is primarily a local one—the Zangezur corridor connecting Azerbaijan, through Armenian territory, with its landlocked exclave the Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic. But the broader relevance of the South Caucasus is as a critical land bridge linking the Black and Caspian Seas, and the European world and Asia. As such, it is an area of geopolitical competition. Russia’s August 2008 invasion of the sovereign nation of Georgia was an attempt to re-establish regional hegemony. Moscow’s military presence in the region has defrosted numerous local conflicts, most recently giving rise to the second Karabakh war in the Autumn of 2020. The militarisation of the region, including by the presence of Russian troops (2 000 in the Nagorno-Karabakh, 3 500 in Gyumri and Erebuni, and 7 000 in Abkhazia and Tskhinvali Region [so called South Ossetia]) increased local defence spending (according to SIPRI, Armenia spent a total of 7.8 billion USD [an average of 3.7% of GDP] and Azerbaijan 35.1 billion USD [3.5% of GDP] between 1997 and 2021) has heightened regional instability. But the fallout from Russia’s war in Ukraine has offered new opportunities to reverse this trend.
Claim: Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic is a territory of Armenia (Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2024-02-02): At the end of the second Karabakh war in 2020, Azerbaijan set out to restore direct transport links with its exclave on the territory of Armenia - the Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic (NAR). Thus, the issue of activating the Zangezur (Nakhichevan or Syunik) corridor with its connection to the international transport network arose on the agenda. Read the full article
Claim: Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic is a territory of Armenia (Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2024-07-26): A festival-convention on the appropriation of Armenian culture by Azerbaijan in Nakhichevan Recently, Azerbaijan has initiated a focused campaign against the sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia. The campaign aims to "legitimize" its territorial ambitions and appropriate Armenian cultural heritage. This has involved organizing various cultural events targeting intangible heritage. One such event was the ethnographic festival convention titled "Return to Western Azerbaijan," held in Nakhichevan from June 21 to 22, 2024. The festival was organized by the Presidents of Azerbaijan and Nakhichevan, the Ministry of Science and Education of Azerbaijan, the State University of the Autonomous Republic of Nakhichevan, and the community organization "Western Azerbaijan." According to the organizers, the primary goal of the event was to support President Ilham Aliyev's policy of restoring the "historical rights" of Azerbaijanis who left their homeland. The festival featured a map of the Republic of Armenia with invented names for cities and villages, alongside various photographs and decorative art objects. Numerous Armenian and regional cultural elements were presented as exclusively Azerbaijani, including folklore dedicated to "Western Azerbaijan," a concert program, films, and literary samples. Additionally, dishes from Armenian cuisine were presented under the label "Irevan cuisine," referring not to Armenia but to Azerbaijan (Figs. 1, 2, 3, 4).
Claim: Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic is a territory of Armenia (Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2019-02-05): What’s going on in Nakhichevan? It worries me. Not the at-best-misleading "news" (several weeks ago) emanating from Azerbaijan that they took control of territory that had been in Armenian hands. Even if that were true, it would be an insignificant blip, and, it’s not true. [...] All this is possible because of a land swap between Iran and Turkey under the Tehran Convention of 1931. This gave Turkey an 11 mile (18km) common border with Nakhichevan. Ostensibly, this came about as a result of the Kurdish rebellion that preceded it. Because Kurds were crossing the border from Iran, Turkey wanted a more controllable border. Even an Armenian source cites this. Supposedly, the land swap was not to gain a common border with Nakhichevan for pan-Turkic reasons. But it baffles me why people cannot conceive that Turkey wanted the land swap for both reasons – the Kurdish and Nakhichevan benefits it bestowed. [...] We must heighten our awareness of Nakhichevan. Happily, Yerevan officialdom seems to be aware of the importance of this front. But more public, especially Diasporan, awareness is important so that if the time should come when trouble starts, we can be of more assistance. Also, it would help us spread the word in government circles worldwide that Turkey likely has nefarious plans for the Republic of Armenia via Nakhichevan.
Claim: Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic is a territory of Armenia (Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2023-11-08): While reporting from the South Caucasus has recently focused on Azerbaijan’s victory in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, it is important to recognise the renewed importance of the Nakhchivan region. This autonomous republic is quickly becoming a key part of regional politics. [...] When the Soviets arrived in the region, the "Democratic Republics" of Armenia and Azerbaijan continued to struggle for dominance in the region. In July 1920, the Red Army invaded and occupied the area. The Nakhchivan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic was declared, which in turn established close ties with the Azerbaijani SSR. In an attempt to gain political support, Armenia’s Bolshevik leaders promised to integrate Nakhchivan, Nagorno-Karabakh and the Zangezur region into the Armenian SSR. At one point this was supported by Lenin and the Bolshevik leaders in Baku. However, the Soviets held a referendum in 1921, in which 90 per cent of the Nakhchivan population voted to remain part of the Azerbaijani SSR. The result was confirmed by the treaty of March 16th 1921 between Turkey and Soviet Russia. From 1924, it became an autonomous republic within the Azerbaijani SSR. During the Soviet period, the region’s Azerbaijani population continued to grow steadily, while the Armenian minority decreased from 15 per cent in 1926 to 1.4 per cent in 1979.
Claim: Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic is a territory of Armenia (Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2024-07-22): The Nakhichevan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic,[a] abbreviated as Nakhichevan ASSR[b] was an autonomous republic within the Azerbaijan SSR, itself a republic within the Soviet Union. It was formed on 16 March 1921 and became a part of the Azerbaijan SSR proper on 9 February 1924. [...] Sovietization [edit]In July 1920, the 11th Soviet Red Army invaded and occupied the region and on 28 July, declared the Nakhichevan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic with "close ties" to the Azerbaijan SSR. In November, on the verge of taking over Armenia, the Bolsheviks, in order to attract public support, promised they would allot Nakhichevan to Armenia, along with Karabakh and Zangezur. This was fulfilled when Nariman Narimanov, leader of Bolshevik Azerbaijan issued a declaration celebrating the "victory of Soviet power in Armenia," proclaimed that both Nakhichevan and Zangezur should be awarded to the Armenian people as a sign of the Azerbaijani people's support for Armenia's fight against the former DRA government:[9]
Claim: Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic is a territory of Armenia (Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2017-10-04): In the case of a resumption of hostilities, Azerbaijan’s main objective would be to use Nakhichevan as a platform to hit strategic targets in Armenia proper. One of these targets is Armenia’s S300PS systems, a sophisticated air defence system that protects the skies of Nagorno-Karabakh and also deters Nakhichevan’s air force from their operations. A number main roads are also within range, including one that links Karabagh with Armenia. These roads lie within direct range of Azerbaijan’s Nakhichevan-based artillery. Another major concern for Armenia is that its capital—Yerevan—is well within firing range of Azerbaijan’s MLRS and, while it is risky for Azerbaijan to strike a major city, this scenario still needs to be taken into account by Armenian military decision-makers. [...] On the other side of the picture is the geographical isolation of Nakhichevan, which carries its own risks for Azerbaijan in any resumption of hostilities. While the militarization of the exclave allows for a potential strike against strategic targets in Armenia, this would come at the cost of a massive retaliation from the Armenian side. It would therefore be unwise for Azerbaijan to sacrifice the whole region in the hope of getting Turkey involved or in the hope of diverting Armenian troops away from Nagorno-Karabakh. Nakhichevan’s geographical isolation would provide Armenia with an easy opportunity to fire into Nakhichevan from vantage points held by its military. It would also allow Armenian troops to easily seize mountain-top posts of the exclave as a buffer, as was seen in 2014 when Armenian troops established control over previously unmanned heights inside Syunik in the Nakhichevan direction during a well-planned surprise night raid.
Claim: Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic is a territory of Armenia (Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2021-06-07): BACKGROUND: Reinstating the transport link between mainland Azerbaijan and Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic is specifically mentioned in article 9 of the November 10, 2020 ceasefire agreement, which Azerbaijan and Armenia signed to end the latest war in Nagorno-Karabakh. The article contains general provisions about unblocking all economic transport routes across the region but only the Azerbaijan-Nakhichevan link is directly mentioned. This route, which is commonly called the Meghri corridor in Armenia and the Zangezur corridor in Azerbaijan, goes through Armenia’s Syunik province and the country is obliged to guarantee safe and free passage of people and goods. The transit route will be overseen by the Russian border service. Moreover, the November 10 accord envisages construction of transport infrastructure that will connect the Nakhichevan exclave with Azerbaijan. [...] The hesitation on Armenia’s part has caused visible frustration in Baku. In recent months, Aliyev has repeatedly argued that Zangezur is a historic Azerbaijani region and hinted that Azerbaijan could take the region by force. On May 12, Azerbaijani forces made an incursion deep into the territory of Armenia proper, in Syunik and Geraghunik provinces. The incident drew international condemnation and caused Armenia to issue an official appeal for help from fellow CSTO members.
Claim: Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic is a territory of Armenia (Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2023-09-25): TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — After Azerbaijan’s military offensive regained full control of the breakaway Nagorno-Karabakh region, another dispute is looming on the horizon with Armenia: the territory of Nakhchivan. Like Nagorno-Karabakh, where the Armenian population felt cut off from the country of Armenia, Nakhchivan is territorially separated from the rest of Azerbaijan. [...] In December, Azerbaijan imposed a blockade of the only road connecting Nagorno-Karabakh with Armenia, alleging that the Armenian government was using the road for mineral extraction and illicit weapons shipments to the region’s separatist forces. Armenia charged that the closure denied basic food and fuel supplies to Nagorno-Karabakh’s approximately 120,000 people.
Claim: Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic is a territory of Armenia (Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2022-09-12): A new report from the Cornell-led Caucasus Heritage Watch (CHW) has compiled decades of high-resolution satellite imagery to document the complete destruction of Armenian cultural heritage in the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic of Azerbaijan beginning in the late 1990s. Moreover, the latest finding of CHW’s heritage monitoring project suggests that the same policy of cultural erasure now threatens Armenian monuments in the Karabakh region of Azerbaijan. CHW has recently discovered the destruction of an historic church in Karabakh, one of hundreds of Armenian monuments in territories ceded to Azerbaijan under the terms of a 2020 ceasefire to a war between Azerbaijan and Armenia. [...] Geographically, Nakhchivan is a 2,125-square-mile province sandwiched between Armenia, Turkey and Iran and an exclave of Azerbaijan – which lies further east, on the far side of Armenia. The region had been inhabited for centuries by a multicultural mix of Armenian, Turkic and Persian communities. But increasing ethnic tensions led to the exodus of Armenians from the province over the course of the Soviet period, leaving behind a rich cultural legacy of historic monasteries, churches and ancestral cemeteries.
Claim: Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic is a territory of Armenia (Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2023-09-25): Erdogan’s planned visit to Nakhchivan following Baku’s military offensive in Nagorno-Karabakh has raised significant concerns regarding the territorial integrity of Armenia. [...] Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic is an Azerbaijani exclave in proximity to Armenia, Iran, and Turkey. Baku has always stated that Armenia has isolated this exclave from the Azerbaijani territory, although Nakhchivan might economically cooperate with neighbouring Turkey and Iran. The establishment of the Iğdir-Nakhchivan natural gas pipeline represents a significant milestone, because this infrastructure might supply gas from the Trans-Anatolian Gas Pipeline (TANAP) in Turkey to the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, replacing the current gas supply from Iran.
Claim: Yukhari Askipara is a territory of Azerbaijan (Yukhari Askipara, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2022-01-14): Yukhari Askipara (Azerbaijani: Yuxarı Əskipara, lit. 'Upper Askipara'; Armenian: Վերին Ոսկեպար, romanized: Verin Voskepar, lit. 'Upper Voskepar') is a destroyed village in an exclave of the Qazakh District of Azerbaijan, currently under the control of Armenia and surrounded by the Tavush Province of Armenia. The exclave has been under control by Armenian forces since the First Nagorno-Karabakh War, which also included fighting in Qazakh. Today, the village is destroyed, with only the foundations and some lower portions of the houses remaining.[1] [...] - ^ a b "Əskipara: illərin məsafəsində". MEYDAN.TV (in Azerbaijani). 2014-04-18. Retrieved 2022-01-14.
Claim: Yukhari Askipara is a territory of Azerbaijan (Yukhari Askipara, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2020-01-01): March-June - Occupation of Kheyrymly, Ashaghy Askipara, Barkhudarly, Sofulu, Gyzylhajyly, Yukhary Askipara villages of the Gazakh district of Azerbaijan.
Claim: Yukhari Askipara is a territory of Azerbaijan (Yukhari Askipara, 2024-10-09)
Evidence (2024-03-20): Etymology [edit]Voskepar derives its name from the Voskepar mountain range; from Armenian ոսկե (voske, gold), and պարան (paran: string or chain). In the 19th and 20th centuries the village was also known as Aksibara and Akhsibara. History [edit]Voskepar was founded in the 6th century.[1] The village contains the 7th-century Armenian Holy Mother of God Church.[3] [...] Geography [edit]The town lies in a valley to the south of the Voskepar Ridge, which reaches heights of 1,538 metres (5,046 ft).[8] The average temperature is 30 °C (86 °F) in summer and −2 °C (28 °F) in winter.[1] The abandoned villages of Yukhari Askipara (Upper Askipara, Verin Voskepar in Armenian) and Ashagi Askipara (Lower Askipara, Nerkin Voskepar in Armenian) are located near the village. The village is located 163 kilometres (101 mi) north of Yerevan.