Russia begins withdrawing peacekeeping forces from Karabakh, now under full Azerbaijan control

MOSCOW (AP) — Officials from both countries say Russian forces are being withdrawn from Azerbaijan’s Karabakh region, where they have been stationed as peacekeepers since the end of a war in 2020. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov on Wednesday confirmed reports of the withdrawal but didn’t give further details. Hikmet Hajiyev, the head of foreign policy in Azerbaijan’s presidential administration, also confirmed the withdrawal. Hajiyev did not say why the forces were being withdrawn, but their presence appeared superfluous after Azerbaijan regained full control of the region last year. Karabakh had been controlled by ethnic Armenian forces since 1994, but Azerbaijan regained parts of the region in a 2020 war that ended with the placement of peacekeepers.