Pompeo hopes Armenia can ‘defend’ itself from Azerbaijan

“We now have the Turks, who have stepped in and provided resources to Azerbaijan, increasing the risk, increasing the firepower that’s taking place in this historic fight,” Pompeo said. 

The Turkish government has also dismissed calls for an immediate cease-fire from the Minsk Group, which is co-chaired by Russia, France and the United States. Turkey has instead urged the Armenians to withdraw from Nagorno-Karabakh.

A Russian-brokered humanitarian cease-fire was supposed to take effect over the weekend, but within hours, the two former Soviet republics had accused each other of launching new attacks. Baku has accused Armenian forces of attempting to seize its gas and oil pipelines, a charge Yerevan denies. 

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden has called on Azerbaijan to de-escalate, and this week, also took aim at Turkey’s participation in the conflict. 

“Turkey’s provision of arms to Azerbaijan and bellicose rhetoric encouraging a military solution are irresponsible,” Biden said in a statement.