Introduction: Forty-Four Days That Changed the South Caucasus

The Second Nagorno-Karabakh War (2020): A Comprehensive History of the 44-Day War, Its Origins, Military Campaigns, Humanitarian Consequences, and Lasting Impact

Historical Research Article | September 27 – November 10, 2020 | Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh)

The Second Nagorno-Karabakh War, commonly known as the 44-Day War, was one of the most consequential armed conflicts in the modern history of the South Caucasus. Beginning on September 27, 2020, and ending with a Russian-brokered ceasefire agreement that took effect on November 10, the war fundamentally altered the military, political, territorial, and humanitarian situation surrounding Nagorno-Karabakh, known to Armenians as Artsakh.

The conflict was fought primarily between Azerbaijan and the armed forces of the Armenian-populated, internationally unrecognized Republic of Artsakh, with direct military involvement by Armenia. Turkey provided extensive political and military support to Azerbaijan, while Russia played a central role in negotiating the ceasefire and deploying peacekeeping forces afterward.

The war resulted in thousands of deaths, widespread destruction, the displacement of civilians, the capture or transfer of large territories, and the loss of Armenian control over the strategically important city of Shushi, known in Azerbaijani as Shusha.

For Armenians, the war represented a national catastrophe involving the loss of territory, communities, historical monuments, churches, homes, and lives. For Azerbaijan, it represented a major military victory and the restoration of control over substantial territories internationally recognized as Azerbaijani.

The conflict also demonstrated the transformation of modern warfare through the extensive use of armed drones, loitering munitions, precision-guided weapons, electronic warfare, artillery, and coordinated ground offensives.

Yet the war cannot be understood through its military operations alone. Its origins stretch back through centuries of Armenian and Azerbaijani history, the Russian Empire, the Soviet Union, the collapse of the USSR, the First Nagorno-Karabakh War, and decades of unsuccessful negotiations.

The events of 2020 did not permanently resolve the underlying political and humanitarian questions. Instead, they created a new regional order whose consequences continued through the blockade of the Lachin Corridor, Azerbaijan's September 2023 military offensive, the mass displacement of Nagorno-Karabakh's Armenian population, and the subsequent negotiations between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

This article examines the conflict from its historical foundations through its military operations, international dimensions, humanitarian consequences, legal controversies, and long-term significance. It distinguishes documented events from disputed claims and identifies where reliable historical evidence remains incomplete.