Azerbaijan’s Defense Ministry says its forces have observed a cease-fire around Nagorno-Karabakh.
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Senor Asratyan, a spokesman for the defense ministry of Nagorno-Karabakh’s de facto government, said the Karabakh forces were observing the deal despite some sporadic violations by Azerbaijani military.
The two former Soviet republics have fought for decades over the Nagorno-Karabakh region, which is populated primarily by Armenian Christians but recognized by the United Nations as part of predominantly Muslim Azerbaijan.
Prior to that, on the night of April 1-2, Azerbaijani armed forces initiated overt offensive operations in the southern, southeastern and northeastern directions of the line of contact with Nagorno Karabakh. Fears are that such fight could quickly bring not just Azerbaijan and Armenia into war, but regional powers like Russian Federation and Turkey as well. Armenian soldiers pose near a frontline in Nagorno-Karabakh, Azerbaijan, Wednesday, April 6, 2016.
“I am deeply disturbed by and condemn this bad new escalation in Azerbaijan’s aggression against Nagorno Karabakh in the form of a significant military assault”, said Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) in a statement on Saturday. Azerbaijan is ethnically tied to Turkey, and there is no love lost between the Turks and Armenians.
The fighting was condemned by the worldwide community, with Russian Federation and the West calling on the sides to restrain from the use of force and return to the political process as there is no military solution to the conflict.
Russian President Vladimir Putin had separate phone calls Tuesday with the leaders of Azerbaijan and Armenia, urging them to honor the cease-fire.
Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov were both heading to Azerbaijan’s capital, Baku, in the next few days.
Armenia claimed to have retaken territory seized by Azerbaijan.
Sargsyan travels to Germany on Wednesday for talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel and Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who is also chairman-in-office of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. Azerbaijan probably has more modern weaponry today.
“We are very sorry about the losses and death of innocent people”, he said.
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Both sides accused each other of triggering the latest outbreak of violence, which has sparked concern of a wider conflict in the region.
