Tag: Nagorno Karabakh

Last updated: May 29, 2026

The Nagorno Karabakh conflict — also known as the Artsakh conflict, and in official Azerbaijani and international usage as the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict — has been the central subject of Groong’s coverage since the podcast launched. With more than 450 episodes addressing the dispute in whole or in part, this archive represents one of the most comprehensive English-language audio records of the conflict’s recent history.

At its core, the conflict was not simply a territorial dispute between two states. The Armenian population of Artsakh — the Republic of Artsakh — was asserting its right to self-determination, a principle recognized in international law and enshrined in the UN Charter. That claim stood in direct tension with Azerbaijan’s insistence on its territorial integrity and the inviolability of Soviet-era administrative borders. The failure to resolve that tension through diplomacy over three decades ultimately ended in war.

Groong covered the 44-Day War of September–November 2020, in which Azerbaijan retook large portions of Nagorno Karabakh (Artsakh) with Turkish military support, and the November 9, 2020 ceasefire brokered by Russia. That ceasefire created an unstable status quo: the Republic of Artsakh continued to exist on a reduced territory under the protection of Russian peacekeepers, but Azerbaijan progressively tightened its grip. The nine-month blockade of the Lachin Corridor from December 2022 onward cut the region off from food, medicine, and fuel, creating a humanitarian crisis documented in real time on Groong.

Azerbaijan’s military offensive of September 19–20, 2023 ended Armenian governance of Nagorno-Karabakh entirely. Within three weeks, virtually the entire Armenian population of Artsakh at the time — some 120,000 people, the descendants of communities that had lived in the region for millenia — was driven from the Republic of Artsakh to Armenia. Human rights organizations and many governments characterized this as ethnic cleansing. The Azerbaijani government dissolved the Republic of Artsakh on January 1, 2024.

Groong’s ongoing coverage addresses the situation of Armenian prisoners of war still held in Baku, including former Artsakh President Arayik Harutyunyan and former State Minister Ruben Vardanyan, the right of return for the displaced population, ongoing Armenia-Azerbaijan peace negotiations, and the prospects for accountability for what occurred.

Guest:

Topics:

  • Armenia between EU and Russia
  • Church–state confrontation in Armenia
  • Artsakh concessions and return debate
  • Economy, debt, and governance
  • NSS raids Artsakh offices

Episode 496 | Recorded: December 15, 2025

#ArmeniaPolitics #EUvsRussia #ArmenianChurch #Artsakh #Geopolitics

Guest:

Topics:

  • Armenia between EU and Russia
  • Church–state confrontation in Armenia
  • Artsakh concessions and return debate
  • Economy, debt, and governance
  • NSS raids Artsakh offices

Episode 496 | Recorded: December 15, 2025

#ArmeniaPolitics #EUvsRussia #ArmenianChurch #Artsakh #Geopolitics

Guest:

Topics:

  • 1988 Earthquake Remembered
  • Pashinyan’s War on the Armenian Church
  • EU-Armenia Relations
  • Nagorno-Karabakh Negotiation Documents
  • ARAR Foundation Poll

Episode 494 | Recorded: December 8, 2025

#ArmenianChurch #NSS #Pashinyan #ArarPoll #ArmeniaEU

Guest:

Topics:

  • 1988 Earthquake Remembered
  • Pashinyan’s War on the Armenian Church
  • EU-Armenia Relations
  • Nagorno-Karabakh Negotiation Documents
  • ARAR Foundation Poll

Episode 494 | Recorded: December 8, 2025

#ArmenianChurch #NSS #Pashinyan #ArarPoll #ArmeniaEU

Guest:

Topics:

  • OSCE MG Dissolved
  • Libaridian on Submitting to Turkey and Azerbaijan
  • News Constitution to be Drafted by March 2026
  • Archbishops, Letters, Attacks on the Church
  • Border Commissions Meet in Baku
  • Comments from Jacob Pursley

Episode 493 | Recorded: December 2, 2025

Guest:

Topics:

  • OSCE MG Dissolved
  • Libaridian on Submitting to Turkey and Azerbaijan
  • News Constitution to be Drafted by March 2026
  • Archbishops, Letters, Attacks on the Church
  • Border Commissions Meet in Baku
  • Comments from Jacob Pursley

Episode 493 | Recorded: December 2, 2025

Guest:

Topics:

  • Venezuela
  • Ukraine War
  • Gaza
  • TRIPP in Armenia

Episode 491 | Recorded: November 29, 2025

#Venezuela #AmericaFirst #USForeignPolicy #TRIPP #UkraineWar

Guest:

Topics:

  • Venezuela
  • Ukraine War
  • Gaza
  • TRIPP in Armenia

Episode 491 | Recorded: November 29, 2025

#Venezuela #AmericaFirst #USForeignPolicy #TRIPP #UkraineWar

Guest:

Topics:

  • Clergy Arrests in Armenia
  • Church Under Pressure
  • Prayer Breakfast Controversy
  • Western Silence on Repression
  • CSI’s Findings in Yerevan

Episode 490 | Recorded: November 25, 2025

#ArmenianChurch #ReligiousFreedom #ClergyArrests #ChristianSolidarityInternational #HumanRightsInArmenia