In response the Nagorno-Karabakh Armenians held a December 10 , 1991 referendum in which the overwhelming majority of the population voted for outright independence . The Azeri community of Nagorno-Karabakh boycotted this referendum . On December 10 , 1991 in a referendum boycotted by local Azerbaijanis , Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh approved the creation of an independent state .