Global Courant 2023-04-11 20:42:11
The countries accuse each other of opening fire around the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh, resulting in deaths.
Armenia and Azerbaijan have accused each other of starting a firefight around the disputed Nagorno-Karabkah region, leaving both sides dead.
The defense ministries of both countries issued statements on Tuesday afternoon saying an undetermined number of their own troops were killed in a clash near the disputed Lachin Corridor.
“Armenian army positions near the settlement of Dyg (on the countries’ shared border) opened heavy fire on Azerbaijani army positions,” the defense ministry in Baku said in a statement, adding that Azerbaijani troops “have returned fire”.
“There are deaths and injuries among Azerbaijani troops,” the statement said, without specifying the number of casualties.
The Armenian Defense Ministry also reported an undetermined casualty count and blamed Baku for initiating the firefight.
“At 16:00 (12:00 GMT) on Tuesday, Azerbaijani forces opened fire in the direction of Armenian soldiers who were carrying out technical work,” the ministry said.
“According to preliminary information, there are dead and wounded on the Armenian side.”
The two countries in the South Caucasus – both formerly part of the Soviet Union – have fought multiple wars over the past 35 years over control of Nagorno-Karabakh, which is internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan but is home to a mostly ethnic Armenian population.
Russia sent a peacekeeping contingent of thousands to the region in 2020 as part of a deal to end weeks of fighting that left thousands dead and Azerbaijan made significant territorial gains.
Moscow is allied with Armenia through a mutual self-defense pact, but has also tried to maintain good relations with Baku.
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev have held several rounds of peace talks brokered by the European Union and the United States.
Last month, Pashinyan noted some progress in the peace process but said “fundamental problems” remain as “Azerbaijan tries to make territorial claims, which is a red line to Armenia”.
In February, the EU sent an expanded monitoring mission to the Armenian side of the border as Western involvement grows in a region that has traditionally been the Kremlin’s sphere of influence.
When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, ethnic Armenian separatists in Karabakh broke away from Azerbaijan. Some 30,000 people were killed in the ensuing conflict.
(TagsToTranslate)News
