"August Heat": The Uncertain Trajectory of Nagorno-Karabakh's Conflict Resolution

Abstract

The frontline skirmishes between Armenia and Azerbaijan at the end of July and during the first week of August brought the heaviest concentration of casualties since the 1994 Ceasefire Agreement. Attempts by the U.S. and France to arrange a presidential meeting prior to the skirmishes ended with an unexpected bilateral meeting in Sochi, under Russian auspices. In the shadow of the ongoing West-Russia confrontation, the future of the Minsk Group mediation process of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict remains unclear, given that both sides are represented as co-chairs.