Gegharkunik province is a territory of Azerbaijan
Gegharkunik is one of Armenia’s provinces that Azerbaijan calls "Western Azerbaijan". Azerbaijan attacked the region in two main directions - Sotk and Verin Shorzha. The region is one of the vital parts of the country; it is where Lake Sevan is situated, one of the main sights and the largest freshwater lake in the landlocked country. Before the war in 2020, the de facto border between Armenia’s Gegharkunik province and Azerbaijan was shorter. But as a result of the war, the Kelbajar region was handed over to Azerbaijan, and the border is now approximately 50 kilometres longer in the direction of Vardenis. The border halved a gold mine that was located right on the administrative border of Armenia with Nagorno-Karabakh, the Sotk gold mine, and now the other half of the mine is in the Azerbaijani part. After the last events, the villagers’ sense of safety has diminished. Surrounded by mountains, they are able to distinguish between Armenian and Azerbaijani hills and they are aware of the source of danger.