Armenia seeks EU aid for refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh

Armenia has asked the European Union for assistance to help it deal with refugees arriving from Nagorno-Karabakh since Azerbaijan took back control of the region last week, the office of Italy’s prime minister said.

Nagorno-Karabakh is internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan but is populated mainly by Armenian Christians who set up the self-styled Republic of Artsakh three decades ago after a bloody ethnic conflict as the Soviet Union collapsed.

More than 100,000 refugees have arrived in Armenia since Azerbaijan launched a military operation to retake control of Nagorno-Karabakh, the head of the U.N. refugee agency (UNHCR) said late on Friday.

Armenia has asked the EU for temporary shelters and medical supplies, the Italian prime minister’s office said in a statement, adding that Rome working to promote stabilisation in the region.

Pope says Nagorno-Karabakh experiencing a humanitarian crisis

Pope Francis on Sunday called for talks between Azerbaijan and Armenia to restore peace in Nagorno-Karabakh, adding that the region was experiencing a humanitarian crisis.

“I have been following the dramatic situation of the displaced people in Nagorno-Karabakh in recent days and I renew my call for dialogue between Azerbaijan and Armenia, hoping that talks between the parties… will foster a lasting agreement that will put an end to the humanitarian crisis,” the pope said during his Sunday prayer.

More than 100,000 refugees have arrived in Armenia since Azerbaijan’s military operation to retake control of Nagorno-Karabakh, the United Nations said on Saturday.

The pope also said he was praying for the victims of the explosion at a fuel depot near the city of Stepanakert in Nagorno-Karabakh.

Photo: Relatives meet after crossing the Azerbaijan – Armenia border near the village of Kornidzor, Armenia. EPA-EFE/ANATOLY MALTSEV