The former head of the National Intelligence Organization (MIT), Hakan Fidan, has suggested that Turkey played a direct role in the Second Nagorno-Karabakh war in 2020. Fidan made this statement before a meeting of Turkey’s National Security Council (MGK), where he received a medal for distinguished service from President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. He dedicated the medal to his comrades who lost their lives serving in various conflicts, including Libya, Karabakh, Syria, and Iraq.
Fidan’s statement implies that Turkey was involved in the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict, which resulted in the deaths of thousands of servicemen and over a hundred civilians. These suspicions of Turkey’s role in the Second Karabakh War date back to 2020 when reports and statements from US and French officials suggested that Turkey helped Azerbaijan prepare and instigate the conflict. According to the Russian newspaper Kommersant, Turkey supplied weapons to Azerbaijan and even sent fighters from Syria and Libya to assist them.
Officially, Turkey’s relationship with Azerbaijan during the conflict was limited to political support and occasional joint military exercises. However, the Kommersant report claims that Turkey had deployed a large number of forces to Azerbaijan just one month before the hostilities broke out. These forces allegedly played a crucial role in coordinating and planning offensive operations against Armenian positions in the region.
The Karabakh war came to an end with a ceasefire brokered by Russia, who also sent peacekeepers to the region to help maintain it. Turkey has expressed its willingness to assist with the peacekeeping mission and has positioned 60 soldiers at a joint monitoring center established by Russia and Turkey in the eastern part of Nagorno-Karabakh.
The Nagorno-Karabakh dispute originated in 1988 when the ethnic Armenian majority region declared independence from Azerbaijan, leading to an ethnic conflict with thousands of casualties. A ceasefire in 1994 froze the conflict, but fighting resumed in 2020, resulting in what is now known as the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War. While the ceasefire has halted major hostilities, sporadic incidents continue to occur between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
In conclusion, the statement by former intelligence chief Hakan Fidan suggests Turkey’s involvement in the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War. Reports and officials from various countries have raised suspicions about Turkey’s role in supporting Azerbaijan during the conflict. The region remains fragile despite the ceasefire, with occasional flare-ups between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Turkey has also expressed its commitment to the peacekeeping mission in Nagorno-Karabakh.
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