France Accuses Turkey of Sending Syrian Mercenaries to Nagorno-Karabakh

French President Emmanuel Macron stands during a meeting with Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta at the Elysee Palace in Paris, on Sept. 30, 2020. Christophe Petit Tesson/Pool via Reuters

PARIS/MOSCOW—France accused Turkey on Thursday of sending Syrian mercenaries to fight in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Turkey has denied sending mercenaries to take part in the conflict.

France, Russia, and the United States are co-chairs of the Organization for Security and Co-operation’s (OSCE) Minsk Group, set up in 1992 to mediate a peaceful resolution over the Nagorno-Karabakh enclave in the South Caucasus.

Russian President Vladimir Putin chairs a meeting of the Presidium of the State Council via a video conference call in Sochi, Russia, on Sept. 28, 2020. Sputnik/Alexei Druzhinin/Kremlin via Reuters

“President (Emmanuel) Macron and (Vladimir) Putin agreed on the need for a joint effort to reach a ceasefire in the framework of Minsk,” Macron’s office said in a statement after the two leaders spoke by telephone.

“They also shared their concern regarding the sending of Syrian mercenaries by Turkey to Nagorno-Karabakh.”

An ethnic Armenian soldier fires an artillery piece during fighting with Azerbaijan's forces in the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh, in this handout picture released on Sept. 29, 2020. Defense Ministry of Armenia/Handout via Reuters

The French presidency provided no evidence to support the accusation about the mercenaries and the Kremlin statement made no mention of the accusation.

Macron, who has been in a war of words with Turkish President Tayyep Erdogan for months, said on Wednesday Ankara was acting in a “warlike” manner.

Russia’s foreign ministry said on Wednesday Syrian and Libyan fighters from illegal armed groups were being sent to the Nagorno-Karabakh regions.

The Azerbaijani army fires a rocket at the contact line of the self-proclaimed Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh, Azerbaijan, on Sept. 27, 2020, Azerbaijan's Defense Ministry via AP

Russia has a military base in Armenia and considers it to be a strategic partner. France’s population includes about 600,000 people of Armenian origin.

Armenia’s ambassador to Moscow said on Monday that Turkey had sent around 4,000 fighters from northern Syria to Azerbaijan and that they were fighting there, an assertion denied by an aide to Azerbaijan’s president, Ilham Aliyev, and Turkey’s government.

By Michel Rose and John Irish