"Turkish F-16s confirmed in Azerbaijan" Topic

Despite Turkish denials, satelite imagery has confirmed presence of Turksih F-16s in Azerbaijan during the current round of hostilities.

Remember the Armenians claimed one of their Su-25s was shot down by a Turkish F-16.

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Also Turkey had previously sent a detachment of T-129 attack helos for an exercise.

One wonders if they are still there!

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I am NOT surprised.

Can you say "target"?

Armenia needs a backer(s) or it may be a short war.

Armenia is in Russia's pocket. The Russians have been very keen to keep this part of the world off balance so as to not be a thorn in their side. Just look back to before the Soviet revolution.

As far as I recall both Armenia and Azerbaijan were a part of Russian empire, and it was absolutely not interested to keep it off balance. On the contrary, as soon as these countries declared independence, they have resumed fighting which was stopped when they were a part of Tzarist Russia.

Apparently Russia has guaranteed the territorial integrity of the internationaly recognised part of Armenia so the Azeris are free to take over Nagorno Karabakh and other occupied territories and do a mini 1915.

Look for potential assistance to come from Iran of all places.

So far, there is no information about the direct or indirect interest or participation of Iran. But the ears of Turkey are clearly visible in this photo))) Sultan Erdogan is in full swing working on the revival of the Ottoman Empire)))
Russia is not interested in the tension in the Caucasus at all – the Interfaith massacre could turn this region, including parts of Russia, into a terrible hemorrhoid)))

Russia is only interest in the pipelines. So they can stop paying ukraine to uses there old pipelines to sell gas to Europe

How can war the Caucasus relieve Russia of the need to pay for gas transit to Ukraine? I do not understand the course of your thought.

The Soviet Union, about a century ago, added part of Armenia to Azerbaijan.
This was part of the divide and control policy the communists used to stay in power.
After the collapse of the Soviet Union new states should have been formed conform pre communism boundaries, but that isn't what happened, and so the old communist divide and control policy kept on causing conflict all over the place.
In the case of Nagorno Karabach the case is simple.
It is a part of Armenia to which Azerbaijan, a short period of communist meddling aside, has no historical rights.
Also, while Azerbaijan is a Muslim inhabited state, Nagorno Karabach is Christian.
And lastly, Azerbaijan propaganda has dehumanized the Armenian Christians for almost thirty years; if Azerbaijan is allowed to conquer Nagorno Karabach genocide will follow.
I think one Armenian genocide was enough, thank you.

For the sake of accusing the communists, you have simplified the situation extremely.
Despite the fact that the overwhelming majority of the population in these territories is Armenians, this region has historically always been a part of Azerbaijan (or its predecessor in these territories, the Karabakh Khanate). In the first half of the 19th century, the Karabakh Khanate was abolished and these territories became part of Russia without any special status.
Karabakh became the arena of the struggle between Azerbaijan and Armenia during the Armenian-Azerbaijani war of 1918-1920. At the end of September, Turkish-Azerbaijani troops established partial control over Karabakh. In January 1919, the British command in the Caucasus announced that Karabakh and Zangezur would be recognized under temporary Azerbaijani command until the decision of the Paris Peace Conference. According to the Armenian-Azerbaijani agreement on August 22, 1919, Karabakh was granted territorial autonomy. At the beginning of 1920 at the Paris Peace Conference, Karabakh was recognized for Azerbaijan (without any communists))). After the Sovietization of Armenia and Azerbaijan, by the decision of the Caucasian Bureau of the Central Committee of the RCP (b) of July 4, 1921, Nagorno-Karabakh was left within Azerbaijan with the provision of broad regional autonomy. In 1923, from the Armenian-populated part of Nagorno-Karabakh (however, without the Shahumyan and part of the Khanlar regions, also populated by Armenians), the Autonomous Region of Nagorno-Karabakh (AOC) was formed as part of the Azerbaijan SSR. In 1937, the AOC was transformed into the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Region (NKAO).
So the communists made the same decision that the Western countries had previously made)))

I suspect the above two theories could both be true, e.g. as part of the USSR, Russia did not want either party to be "off balance".

However, now that the USSR is no more, and that Putin would like to "re-make" it, I absolutely DO think that Russia might/would want them to be "off balance" so they'll wish for the good olde days of Soviet control and peace.

That's the way an ex-KGB officer who is now President for Life would think, and he'd act accordingly.

This hostility is based on more than one century. The closest situation in the Caucasus is Kosovo. If only the dominance of a united Europe in this region weakened – the massacre there will begin again. And no solution will ever fully satisfy either side.
Russia in the Caucasus needs peace at any cost. This entire region is a large Kosovo with centuries of hostility of the peoples living here for each other. If the war of Muslims against everyone else starts in the Caucasus again, Russia will have big problems.
And you grossly overestimate the role of Putin's personality (and any other leader). There is always a huge support group behind a leader, and it is in the interests of these people that this leader acts. If he stops satisfying the needs of these people, he will very quickly leave the stage. Putin is simply the "talking head" of a number of elite groups. Like Trump in the USA (and the world))))

Iran built a pipeline into Armenia who was to provide power to very Northwestern Iran. It was also hoped to link that pipeline to the Black Sea to open up the European market to Iran. A fair bit of squabbling was conducted over the size of the pipeline by Russia and others.

The Iran-Armenia-Georgia gas pipeline was never completed even up to the territory of Georgia. And the segment that is available is used only by a third of the power. Thanks to the USA and sanctions against Iran)))
Now this gas pipeline, as an opportunity to supply gas from Iran to Europe, is already unprofitable for the Turks, who are preparing to become one of the largest gas transit countries to Europe, receiving gas from three countries: Iran, Russia and Azerbaijan (receiving a lot of benefits from diversification).
And here, too, there is a direct benefit to Turkey, while Iran will be a clear loser. This gas pipeline is not profitable for Russia, but the likelihood of its construction was and remains low as long as the conflict between Iran and the United States continues.

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There's also the planned East-Med pipeline Turkey's trying to prevent from being built.
Sultan Erdogan needs a gas monopoly to help realize his Ottoman Empire pipe dream.

Sultan Erdogan needs a gas monopoly to help realize his Ottoman Empire pipe dream.

Nice double entendre.