ArmInfo.The capture of all of Artsakh did not happen due to the fact that Russia, let's say, motivated Azerbaijan to sign the agreement of November 9. A similar opinion, answering ArmInfo's question, during the Moscow-Yerevan online conference organized by Sputnik Armenia, was expressed by Viktor Murakhovsky, a member of the Expert Council of the collegium of the military-industrial commission, retired colonel, editor-in-chief of the "Arsenal of the Fatherland" magazine.
"The ultimate goal of Azerbaijan was the complete capture of all of Karabakh. And this would have happened without Russian intervention. The reason is the insufficiently organized system of the Armenian defense. I do not want to go into details, but, in my opinion, many aspects of the defensive operation by the Armenian side were, to put it mildly, not implemented, "he stressed.
According to the expert, this happened in conditions when not only the Karabakh Defense Army fought in Artsakh from the Armenian side, there was also full-scale support from people and equipment from Armenia. Murakhovsky noted one more fact - according to the official figures of the parties, the ratio of losses is practically equal. Meanwhile, as, according to his estimates, it contradicts the history of military art - the losses of the advancing side should exceed three times the losses of the defending side. If, of course, the defense is organized properly.
<Yes, soldiers and officers fought heroically, defending their native land. But I will not give a high assessment of the defensive operation. In many ways, it was a failure. The main goal of any war is to get a better position than it was before the war. Based on this, Azerbaijan has fulfilled its tasks. Like Turkey, in all likelihood, the Turks will create a permanent military base on the territory of Azerbaijan, "he said. "According to the geopolitical results of the war, Armenia lost the territories controlled by the Karabakh Defense Army, which, at the same time, were considered by the international community to be a part of Azerbaijan. The indigenous territory of Armenia is not affected, including thanks to the intervention of Russia. Russia itself has increased its weight, both in Armenia and in Azerbaijan. Moreover, by bringing peacekeepers to Karabakh, Russia drew red lines for Turkey, which Ankara has not yet decided to cross, "Murakhovsky stressed.
In general, the current situation around Karabakh, according to the expert, resembles the situation in Syrian Idlib. At first, Turkey also wanted a lot there, but then agreed to delimit the zones of influence with Russia. And today, despite the huge influence of Turkey, the situation has moved to a new status quo regime. "Nevertheless, the issue of the final status of Karabakh must be resolved. Otherwise, in 5 years, the theoretical timeframe for the withdrawal of Russian peacekeepers will not fade the conflict to the extent that it will be possible to simply stop paying attention to it, "Murakhovsky summed up.