Signaling the end of a multi-year deployment of Russian peacekeepers in the strategic South Caucasus region, the Russian and Turkish flags were lowered to mark the closure of a joint ceasefire monitoring center in Nagorno-Karabakh's Aghdam. Terminated before its original 2025 date, Russian participation has been battling Armenian charges that accuse Moscow of failing to protect Armenian interests, which are argued as having resulted in the exodus of at least 100,000 ethnic Armenians living there.