World

Breakaway Republic Nagorno-Karabakh Will Cease to Exist by Jan. 1

DISSOLVING

The self-declared republic’s state institutions are set to dissolve, a week after a victory by Azeri forces and a mass Armenian exodus.

Vehicles carrying refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh queue on the road leading toward the Armenian border, in Nagorno-Karabakh, Sept. 25, 2023.
David Ghahramanyan/Reuters

The breakaway republic of Nagorno-Karabakh will dissolve by Jan. 1, 2024, according to a decree signed by the president of the ethnic Armenian enclave. The news comes a week after a victory by Azeri forces and the exodus of thousands of ethnic Armenians to Armenia. President Samvel Shahramanyan’s decree, which calls for the dissolution of all government institutions and organizations in the republic, marks the termination of decades of fighting between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the region. Azerbaijan declared victory after a 24-hour conflict last week, and it has long said that citizens of the republic, which lies within its borders, must accept Azerbaijani citizenship if they stay.

Read it at The Wall Street Journal