Sudden fighting between Armenia and Azerbaijan in the border area around Nagorno-Karabakh killed up to 15 Armenian soldiers on Tuesday. Which the Armenian government reported and various media on Tuesdays.
Twelve soldiers are said to have been taken prisoner of war by Azerbaijan. The Azerbaijani army reported no losses. According to observers, this would be the heaviest escalation of violence since the war between the two countries, exactly one year ago.
According to Armenian sources, the fighting would have taken place on the border near Goris, in the southern Armenian border province of Sjoenik. However, Azerbaijan said most of the fighting took place in the northern valley of Kelbajar and the Lachin mountain pass on the border. Both sides spoke of “provocations”, Armenia accused Baku of conducting a “disinformation campaign”.
Also read: Armenians leave their houses in ashes
Conversations with Russia
The fighting ended late Tuesday night after Russia intervened. Defense ministers of both countries spoke by telephone with Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoygu. Russian President Putin held telephone conversations with Armenian President Nikol Pashninian. EU President Charles Michel said Tuesday night on Twitter that he had spoken with both Pashninian and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev. Last week, representatives of both countries met in Paris.
It is the worst outbreak of violence since the short but fierce war in the South Caucasus region a year ago. It is estimated that more than six thousand people were killed, and Armenia lost large parts of the Nagorno-Karabakh to the militarily stronger Azerbaijan, backed by Turkey.
Also read: There is an agreement, but are the weapons now silent in the Caucasus?
Although Armenia is a member of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), a security pact led by Russia, Moscow did not provide military support. Instead, a peace accord was signed under President Putin’s leadership. In addition, significant parts of the internationally unrecognized Armenian enclave, including the second city of Shusha, came under Azerbaijan control.
Russia stationed two thousand peacekeepers in the area for a period of five years. The agreement has not relieved tensions. The Armenian loss sparked political unrest in the country and demonstrations against President Pasjinian. In July of this year, three Armenian soldiers were killed in fighting.
#Conflict #Armenia #Azerbaijan #NagornoKarabakh #flares