Deadly clashes in Nagorno-Karabakh as Armenia-Azerbaijan engage in US peace talks

crisis group she joins us now live from Tbilisi in Georgia good to have you with us on the program I mean despite these peace talks being hosted by the Americans is everyone sort of holding their breath after this incident because no one really wants it to escalate in fact uh there have been many incidents taking place since the beginning of Spring and this is not the

first time when we see clashes taking place along the front lines the only difference now is that with this particular incident took place exactly the time when Armenian and azerbaijani foreign ministers and their delegation they were sitting in front of each other and discussing the peace talks it's really very important to know that the Americans are hosting the talks but they are not mediating them and

then it's of course with sort of incidents they are adding uh more problems and there is kind of they are creating more difficult environment there are many more people back home are asking what what's uh you know why are they there uh if if the talks cannot really prevent with sort of incidents indeed we saw Russia take a pivotal role in getting the sides together we

talk about mediation they're the ones that actually broken a ceasefire as well Russia has been bogged down really in the war in Ukraine it some might say they've taken their eye off the ball the U.S is replacing them to some extent what's in it for the US to get these sides to talk and to find some sort of resolution it's not really uh right to say

that the US is replacing them in fact since Russia started its invasion of Ukraine with uh with sort of diplomacy between Armenia and Azerbaijan has stated out any kind of interlocutors so in a way uh what the United States are doing what the European uh Union is are doing they are in effect they are helping the size to sustain their communication and to continue talking to

each other when Russia has time they also do that in fact Russia has a presence on the ground they have a Russian peacekeeping Mission uh present in the very conflict Zone but with Russia being dragged so much in in its war in Ukraine there is less and less um kind of dependency where there is less eagerness from from Azerbaijan to even pay attention to the fact

that the Russian peacekeepers are there I want to jump in then because you know we keep talking about Russia here in this conversation what does Washington get out of this I mean the US yes is hosting these two sides to talk to each other but they must want to see something happen or else they wouldn't be facilitating as hosts there must be a reason for Washington

to be involved it's a very good question and then the main reason why we see so many more westerners and not just Americans but also Europeans getting so involved between Armenia and Azerbaijan is in order to prevent another war in the Russia's neighborhood there is a good potential for that we saw fresh Galatians last year each day later than the other one so what we see

now is Americans and Europeans trying somehow to find a way out somehow to prevent with new work that will be so difficult to address it's not only Russia that is busy with the war in Ukraine which is also the west and they definitely don't want to see another bloody war taking place in this part of the world it is a certainly a worrying development though there

for the moment Alicia varton and thanks so much for joining us from Tbilisi in Georgia thank you for your time