The response of the ‘international community’ to Nagorno-Karabakh could be viewed via the several United Nations resolutions which have been passed since the conflict broke out in the early 1990s. However, despite the apparent acceptance that Armenia is in illegally occupying Azerbaijani sovereign territory, the international community has failed to come together and act decisively in this conflict.
However, since the flair up in Abkhazia and South Ossetia, there has certainly been an increased attention on the Caucasus in general and Nagorno-Karabakh in particular, with some fearing that Nagorno-Karabakh is the next ‘frozen conflict’ to break out into full scale war.
There is certainly a sense that the international community wants the N-K conflict to be resolved peacefully, and there is no shortage of countries coming forward and offering to work as envoys. Since the South Ossetia conflict, Russia has become proactive in seeking a resolution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict by mediating talks between the Armenian and Azerbaijani presidents. These took place in November and resulted in the signing of a joint declaration by the Presidents of Azerbaijan, Armenia and Russia. Analysts have suggested that by doing this Russia may be aiming to build goodwill with the international community after its aggression in Georgia. However, Russia may seek to deploy its own troops as peacekeepers in the Lachin corridor to maintain influence in Armenia. Similarly, the Iranian Ambassador to Baku, Naser Hamidi-Zare, has proposed that Iran acts as a mediator in the dispute.