Armenians in the region of Nagorno-Karabakh , which was promised to Armenia by the Bolsheviks but transferred to the Azerbaijan SSR by Stalin , began a movement to unite the area with Armenia . The majority Armenian population expressed concern about the forced " Azerification " of the region . On February 20 , 1988 , the Supreme Soviet of the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast voted to unify with Armenia . Demonstrations took place in Yerevan showing support for the Karabakh Armenians . Azerbaijani authories encouraged counter demonstrations . However , these soon broke down into violence against Armenians in the city of Sumgait . Soon , ethnic rioting broke out between Armenians and Azeris , preventing a solid unification from taking place . A formal petition written to Gorbachev and senior leaders in Moscow asked for the unification of the enclave with Armenia , but the claim was rejected in the spring of 1988 . Until then , the Soviet leader had been viewed favorably by Armenians , but following his refusal to alter his stance on the issue , Gorbachev 's standing among Armenians deteriorated sharply
violence against Armenians
Sumgait pogrom
Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic