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The issue of Armenian refugees who arrived in Armenia from Azerbaijan from 1988 to 1993 still remains a topic for public discussions. Both Armenia and Artsakh take steps at the state level to address the matter. 

Refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) began to appear in Artsakh along with the intensification of the conflict, which emerged as a result of the attempts of the Azerbaijani authorities to suppress the right to self-determination of the Armenian population of Artsakh (Nagorno Karabakh) with the use of force.

As a result of mass murder, massacres and ethnic cleansing of the Armenian population of the former Azerbaijan SSR, more than 450 thousand Armenians were forced to flee from Azerbaijan. According to the "NKR Union of Refugees" non-governmental organization, more than 100 thousand Armenians from Azerbaijan fled to Nagorno Karabakh from 1988 to 1991. A significant number of them continue to live in Nagorno Karabakh to this day.
Further escalation of the conflict and its transition into a military phase led to another wave of refugees and IDPs. From April to August 1991, the Azerbaijani authorities, with the support of the internal troops and the armed forces of the Soviet Union, launched a massive military and police operation "Koltso" (Ring). As a result, more than two dozen villages of Artsakh were devastated and destroyed; nearly ten thousand people were displaced.

Another 66,000 Armenians became refugees and internally displaced persons after the large-scale aggression launched by Azerbaijan against the Nagorno Karabakh Republic in 1992, and the occupation of the Shahumyan region, a large part of the Martakert region and parts of the Askeran and Martuni regions. From 1993 to 1994, after the liberation of the villages of the Askeran region and a significant part of the Martakert region, almost half of them were able to return to their places of residence.

Today, more than 30,000 refugees and IDPs (20 percent of the population) live in Nagorno Karabakh. They are either part of the displaced Armenian population of Azerbaijan, or originate from the territories of Nagorno Karabakh, subjected to ethnic cleansing and currently occupied by Azerbaijan. The authorities of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic have done everything possible to ensure their smooth integration (assistance in obtaining housing, providing a wide range of social benefits, etc.).

In 2003, the NKR Law "On Refugees" was adopted, which granted them refugee status and enabled them to access certain rights and privileges, as well as services and assistance.

In 2006, the "Refugees and International Law" Civil Society Network conducted a survey among Armenian refugees from Azerbaijan living in Nagorno Karabakh, Armenia, Russia, the United States, Australia, Sweden, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, according to which direct losses of property exceeded 112,000 US dollars per person. Since then, there have been other surveys or no needs assessments of IDPs and refugees in the Republic of Artsakh due to lack of adequate funding.
The escalation of the Azerbaijani-Karabakh conflict in early April 2016 led to the displacement of more than 14,500 people (9 percent of the population), of which 2,000, mostly women, children and elderly people, fled to Armenia. Most of them were able to return, and by the end of 2016, a total of 573 persons (172 families), mainly from the conflict affected village of Talish, remained displaced.

In the absence of proper financial support from international organizations and donors, except ICRC the NKR government has to address this issue within its limited financial resources.

After the April war in 2016, the Ministry of Urban Development of the Republic of Artsakh has been implementing a reconstruction program with a total cost of about 4,640,000 US dollars. The program covers the town of Martakert and the villages of Mataghis, Talish and Alashan of the Martakert region. The above-mentioned financial resources have been directed to the reconstruction of 37 houses in the town of Martakert and 26 houses in Mataghis, restoration of schools and kindergartens in Mataghis and Talish, the construction of administrative buildings in Talish, as well as installation of 21 cottages and construction of dormitories in Alashan.

The NKR Ministry of labour, social affairs and resettlement provided various assistance (food, hygiene products, bedding, household appliances, furniture, etc.) to the IDPs from Talish, Mataghis and Tonashen villages of the Martakert region, who found shelter in Stepanakert, Shushi and Alashan. The Ministry provided a one-time cash assistance of about 110 US dollars to each of 34 residents from the village of Talish. In total, the assistance program amounted to about 25,000 US dollars. An additional 8,000 US dollars was allocated for the purchase of cattle.

The only international organization that supports IDPs in Artsakh is the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), while the UNHCR provided assistance only to those who fled to Armenia.

The ICRC has been working in Nagorno Karabakh since 1992. The organization has carried out a variety of humanitarian projects aimed at assisting the most vulnerable groups of society, including refugees and IDPs.

After the April war in 2016, the ICRC Office in Stepanakert cooperated with the authorities to assess and respond to the situation of displaced families in the most affected villages (Talish, Tonashen and Mataghis) to meet urgent needs. The ICRC Office provided approximately 80 US dollars per person per month to people did not have regular sufficient salary to stabilize food consumption and living conditions for the displaced population of the above-mentioned villages for a period of two months.
The limited humanitarian aid provided by the ICRC, as well as the ongoing assistance of the Armenian Diaspora and the United States congressional allocations since 1998 have helped to address some of those needs. However, more assistance is needed to fully meet the basic humanitarian needs of refugees and IDPs in Nagorno Karabakh.

Regrettably, the Azerbaijani authorities continue to hamper the humanitarian access of the UNHCR and other specialized agencies to the territory of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic and oppose any international assistance to the displaced population of Artsakh, thus violating their fundamental rights. As a result, those people are subjected to collective punishment for the simple reason of living in an unrecognized country.