The Russian Defense Ministry has announced the number of Armenians returning to Nagorno-Karabakh from Armenia under the control of Russian peacekeeping forces after the war. According to official statistics, over 51,000 Armenians returned to only Khankendi during this period.

However, many experts believe that this figure does not fully reflect the truth. Investigative journalist and editor-in-chief of Milli.az Elchin Alioglu says the number of Armenians returning to Nagorno-Karabakh differs from official news.

Speaking to Eurasia Diary, Elchin Aliyoglu said that more than 34,000 Armenians brought to Karabakh by peacekeepers had returned to Armenia.

"After the statement signed between Russia, Azerbaijan and Armenia on the night of November 9-10, the return of Armenians to the areas under the operational control of Russian peacekeepers began. If we look at the information spread by the peacekeepers' headquarters in Khankendi, we can see that more than 51,000 Karabakh Armenians have returned to Karabakh from Armenia. This is the official statistics of the turn. But it does not reflect the reality. "

According to Aliyoglu, more than half of the Armenians are illegally resettled in Karabakh.

"These Armenians have been resettled in Nagorno-Karabakh and other occupied territories since 1992 as part of settlement programs. "Among them, along with Armenian citizens, there were also Armenians from Russia, Syria and Lebanon," he said.

Elchin Aliyoglu noted that the majority of Armenians returned to Nagorno-Karabakh after November 10 and relocated in Karabakh where they had left before: “There are real reasons for Armenians to leave Nagorno-Karabakh. After the liberation of the occupied territories by the Azerbaijani army in the Second Karabakh War, the Armenians of Karabakh lost their income. Their main sources of income in the liberated areas were agriculture, arable land, industrial enterprises, mining, hydroelectric power plants, orchards and wineries. After the liberation of those territories, the Armenians from Karabakh were deprived of all those opportunities.

"If we look at an ordinary situation, we see that the Armenians of Karabakh have no hope for tomorrow. There are no income, no jobs, no agrarian areas. Most of those who come for these reasons are leaving those places. But this is not shown in any official statistics," said the journalist.

Elchin Aliyoglu also noted that according to information and allegations written by Armenians in Armenian non-governmental organisations, public structures, as well as on social networks, more than 34,000 Armenians brought to Karabakh by peacekeepers have returned to Armenia.

"They do not intend to live in Armenia either. Because Armenia has a negative attitude towards Karabakh Armenians. Armenians call Karabakh Armenians either "Karabakhtsi" or "Karabakhneri" in their own dialect. In Armenia, in their own colloquial speech, they are more insultingly called as "Karabakh heyvanneri", ie "Karabakh animals". Therefore, they intend to migrate from Armenia to Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and Kazakhstan. Even in early December last year, there were rumours that Karabakh Armenians would be issued Russian passports.

Allegedly, the situation in South Ossetia and Abkhazia will be repeated in Karabakh. But these myths also vanished. The Armenians in Karabakh also say that they are Azerbaijanis on all four sides,” Aliyoglu added.

Referring to the $120 million investment made by Armenians in the last 28 years to build infrastructure in occupied Nagorno-Karabakh, the editor-in-chief said that in fact most of this investment was misappropriated by Armenia and the separatist regime. It is unknown how this investment was spent. We see for ourselves that the liberated areas have been bombed and there is not a single building that is safe now. This investment was appropriated by the Armenian leadership and the leaders of the junta in Nagorno-Karabakh. Armenian diasporas in Russia and other countries have already stopped providing financial assistance to Armenia and Karabakh Armenians. The main reason for the suspension of aid is the departure of Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh.