Geography
Location: Southwest part of Azerbaijan (had no common border with Armenia)
Territory: 4,400 sq. km (1,700 sq. miles)
The Nagorno-Karabakh region of the Republic of Azerbaijan is part of the geographical area called Garabagh (Qarabağ). The name of this part of the country consists of two Azerbaijani words: “qara” (black) and “bağ” (garden).
This area covers the lands from the Araz River in the south to the Kur River in the north, and from junction of the Kur and Araz Rivers in the east to the eastern ranges of the Lesser Caucasus in the west.
Demography
Population
- At present: estimated to be around 100,000-160,000
- Before the conflict: 185,000 (1989)
National composition
- At present: 100% Armenian
- Before the conflict: 75% Armenian, 25% Azeri (1989)
Crisis
Refugees:
- Azerbaijan: 200,000
- Armenia: 229,000 (by other reports 300,000-400,000)
Internally Displaced Persons (IDP’s):
- Azerbaijan (“mainland”): 650,000
- Armenia: almost none
- Armenians in Mountainous Karabakh: approx. 15,000
- Nakhichevan AR of Azerbaijan: almost none
Losses from both sides during the conflict:
- Killed: 25,000-30,000
Other impacts:
- Ethnic cleansing committed against Azeris in Armenia and in the occupied 20 % of Azerbaijan;
- Partial ethnic cleansing against the Armenian population in the rest of Azerbaijan;
- Billions of dollars of economic damage resulting from war destruction, embargo policies;
- Environmental pollution and damage to both countries.
