The federal government is suspending the export of sophisticated Canadian drone technology to Turkey while Ottawa investigates allegations that it is being used by the Azerbaijani military against Armenian forces in Nagorno-Karabakh, Foreign Affairs Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne said Monday.
Champagne was responding to calls by Canada’s Armenian community and disarmament group Ploughshares International to stop the export of Canadian drone optics and laser targeting systems to Turkey following reports that Ankara has deployed dozens of unmanned aircraft in combat against Armenian forces in the breakaway Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan.
According to Kelsey Gallagher, an expert with Project Ploughshares who has studied exports of Canadian drone technology to Turkey, these sensors, produced by L3Harris WESCAM, in Burlington, Ont., are used by Turkish TB2 Bayraktar combat drones, allowing them to see what happens on the ground day and night, in all weather conditions, and direct fire.
Armenia has accused Turkey of using its TB2 Bayraktar combat drones left in Azerbaijan following recent joint exercises to pummel Armenian forces from the air, collect intelligence and direct artillery and missile fire that has increasingly targeted not only military positions but also civilian infrastructure.
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Armenia has also accused Turkey of redeploying fighters from Syria to support Azerbaijani forces, but Turkey has denied sending people or arms to the conflict.
“Over the last several days, certain allegations have been made regarding Canadian technology being used in the military conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh,” Champagne said in a statement, adding that he directed officials at Global Affairs Canada to investigate those claims as soon as they were made.
“In line with Canada’s robust export control regime and due to the ongoing hostilities, I have suspended the relevant export permits to Turkey, so as to allow time to further assess the situation.”
‘No alternative to a peaceful, negotiated solution’
An unexploded projectile of a multiple rocket launcher stuck in a street after shelling by Azerbaijan’s artillery during a military conflict in Stepanakert, in the self-proclaimed Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh, Azerbaijan, Monday, Oct. 5, 2020. Armenia accused Azerbaijan of firing missiles into the capital of the breakaway territory of Nagorno-Karabakh, while Azerbaijan said several of its towns and its second-largest city were attacked. (David Ghahramanyan/NKR InfoCenter PAN Photo via AP)
Nagorno-Karabakh lies inside Azerbaijan but has been under the control of ethnic Armenian forces backed by Armenia since it declared independence from Azerbaijan in 1991 during the breakup of the Soviet Union.
Fierce fighting along the entire Line of Contact in Nagorno-Karabakh raged for the ninth consecutive day on Monday, with Armenian authorities reporting heavy bombardment of the region’s capital Stepanakert and several other towns. The Armenians reported being hit by cluster bombs that are prohibited by the UN Convention on Cluster Munitions.
The Azerbaijani Defence Ministry, in turn, accused Armenian forces of shelling the towns of Tartar, Barda and Beylagan. Ganja, Azerbaijan’s second-largest city located about 100 kilometres north of Nagorno-Karabakh, also was “under fire,” officials said.
“Canada continues to be concerned by the ongoing conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh resulting in shelling of communities and civilian casualties,” Champagne said.
“We call for measures to be taken immediately to stabilize the situation on the ground and reiterate that there is no alternative to a peaceful, negotiated solution to this conflict.”
People walk inside a building, destroyed by shelling by Armenian forces in Barda, Azerbaijan, Monday, Oct. 5, 2020. (Unal Cam/DHA via AP)
Speaking at a press conference in Ottawa, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that he is sending Champagne to Europe “to discuss with our allies the developments in Eastern Europe and the Caucasus, particularly in Nagorno-Karabakh.”
Armenia’s embassy in Ottawa welcomed the announcement by Champagne.
“This acknowledges Turkey’s direct involvement in the aggression against the people of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) perpetrated by Azerbaijan,” Armenia’s ambassador in Canada, Anahit Harutyunyan, said in a statement, referring to the Armenian name of Nagorno-Karabakh.
“Only through joint efforts can the international community stop Turkish-supported Azerbaijani aggression, backed by foreign mercenaries, against the vulnerable Armenian population.”
Canadian-Armenian community organizations that had lobbied hard to stop military exports to Turkey also welcomed the announcement.
People help an injured man in a bomb shelter during shelling by Azerbaijan’s artillery during a military conflict in Stepanakert, self-proclaimed Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh, Azerbaijan, Sunday, Oct. 4, 2020. The fighting is the biggest escalation in years in the decades-long dispute over the region, which lies within Azerbaijan but is controlled by local ethnic Armenian forces backed by Armenia. (Aram Kirakosyan/PAN Photo via AP)
Hagop Arslanian, deputy chairman of the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU) in Canada, one of the largest Armenian community organizations, said they were “satisfied” with Ottawa’s announcement.
“Let it be clear that there is no military resolution to this conflict,” Arslanian said.
However, the Armenian community wants Trudeau to take on a more active diplomatic role by calling his counterparts in Turkey and Azerbaijan to demand an immediate ceasefire, he added.
“Equally, we want him to call [Armenian] Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and communicate his support, message for peace,” Arslanian said.
International pressure building up
The international community doubled up on its efforts to achieve a ceasefire in Nagorno-Karabakh on Monday as well.
In a joint statement, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Russian Foreign Affairs Minister Sergey Lavrov and his French counterpart, Jean-Yves Le Drian, condemned “in the strongest terms the unprecedented and dangerous escalation of violence in and outside of the Nagorno-Karabakh zone.”
“The Ministers stress unconditionally that recent attacks allegedly targeting civilian centres – both along the Line of Contact and on the territories of Azerbaijan and Armenia outside the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone – and the disproportionate nature of such attacks constitute an unacceptable threat to the stability of the region,” said the statement by the three top diplomats representing the co-chair countries of the OSCE Minsk Group.
The statement by the OSCE Minsk Group, which was set up in 1992 to mediate the resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, called on all the conflicting parties to accept “an immediate and unconditional ceasefire.”
Iran, which shares a border with both Armenia and Azerbaijan, also said it is working on a peace plan for its neighbours, while Georgia, which borders Armenia and Azerbaijan along their northern border, offered its good offices for negotiations.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, left, and Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan pose for photos before a meeting, in Ankara, Turkey, Monday, Oct. 5, 2020. The fighting between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces over the separatist territory of Nagorno-Karabakh resumed Monday and Stoltenberg said the 30-country military alliance is “deeply concerned by the escalation of hostilities,” urging Turkey to help end the fighting. (Turkish Presidency via AP, Pool)
Turkish and Azerbaijani embassies did not respond to Radio Canada International’s request for comment in time for publication.
However, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan insisted on Monday that Turkey will stand with its ally Azerbaijan until it reaches “victory.” He also maintained that it was the international community’s silence in the face of what he called past Armenian aggression that encouraged it to attack Azerbaijani territory.
“In truth, lending support to Azerbaijan’s struggle to liberate territories that have been occupied is the duty of every honorable nation. It is not possible for the world to reach lasting peace and calm without getting rid of bandit states and their bandit leaders,” Erdogan said in an address to the nation following a Cabinet meeting.
Earlier, Armenia’s Pashinyan said “a cease-fire can be established only if Turkey is removed from the South Caucasus.”
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