In 1988 , with the relaxation of the Soviet Union under Mikhail Gorbachev and his policies of '' perestroika '' and '' glasnost '' , the Armenians demanded the unification of NKAO with Soviet Armenia . The mass movement started in mid-February 1988 and on February 20 , 1988 , the regional council issued a request to transfer the region to Soviet Armenia . Few days later the Sumgait pogrom took place , leaving dozens of Armenian civilians dead and thousands being forced to leave . This event unofficially starting the Nagorno-Karabakh War . The clashes escalated to a full-scale war by 1992 . Most Armenians of Azerbaijan and Azerbaijanis of Armenia were forced to leave . The war ended in May 1994 with the Armenian forces establishing '' de facto '' control of Nagorno-Karabakh and several Azerbaijani districts surrounding the former NKAO . Today , the area is '' de facto '' under control of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic , but is still recognized as '' de jure '' part of Azerbaijan by the international community
Sumgait pogrom
Sumgait pogrom
Karabakh dialect