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In the bloody conflict in the South Caucasus region of Nagorno-Karabakh, Armenia and Azerbaijan have made another attempt to cease fire. It went into effect Sunday night, but was apparently brittle a few hours later. Both sides accused each other of violating the ceasefire. Armenia spoke of the victims on both sides following the new attacks from the Azerbaijani side.
Earlier, there were international calls to end the fighting and return to the negotiating table. About a week ago, hostile countries agreed to a ceasefire, mediated by Russia. However, this agreement was broken shortly after its entry into force. The warring parties blamed each other for this, as well as for the outbreak of new fighting in late September.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov made an urgent appeal to his colleagues in Armenia and Azerbaijan on Saturday night to maintain the agreement. Shortly afterwards, the foreign ministries of both countries literally announced a “humanitarian ceasefire”, which came into effect two hours later.
Armenia talks about rockets and artillery fire
But just hours later, a spokeswoman for the Armenian Defense Ministry said there had been artillery and rocket fire from the enemy. Azerbaijan launched an attack in the south of the conflict region on the border with Iran. There were deaths and injuries. The Foreign Ministry announced that Armenia would “take all necessary measures” to force Azerbaijan to peace.
Azerbaijan detects a “serious” violation
The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry, in turn, later accused Armenia of “seriously” violating the agreement. Consequently, the Armenian side is said to have bombed the city of Cabrayil and several villages that were previously under Azerbaijani control. Azerbaijan “took retaliatory measures,” he said.
According to media reports, Baku has declared its willingness to hand over the bodies of Armenian soldiers outside the conflict zone on the Azerbaijani-Armenian border to Armenia. The Nagorno-Karabakh authorities gave a similar guarantee.
Lavrov reminded the parties to the conflict, according to his ministry, that the ceasefire also served humanitarian reasons. However, according to the Armenian Defense Ministry, a proposal to rescue the wounded overnight was “strictly” rejected by the Azerbaijani side.
Erdogan with accusations against the United States, Russia and France
The President of Turkey, an ally of Azerbaijan, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, accused Armenia of unilaterally breaking the ceasefire. He also accused the United States, Russia and France of providing military support to Armenia. “They are providing all kinds of arms aid to Armenia and the Armenians,” Erdogan said Sunday in Sirnak in southeastern Turkey. The three countries mediate the conflict in the Minsk Group of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). Azerbaijan receives arms aid from Turkey, while Armenia views Russia as a protective power.
EU Foreign Affairs Representative Josep Borrell complained Sunday night after talks with the Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign ministers that fighting resumed despite the ceasefire agreement. “This leads to even greater suffering for civilians. It increases the conflict between states and societies, making it even more difficult to heal the wounds. The population of Nagorno-Karabakh has already experienced excessive suffering. The whole conflict is already great. and unacceptable It brought sacrifices. The EU condemns such attacks, no matter who the perpetrators are, “Borrell said in a broadcast.
Thousands of people fled
The two former Soviet republics have been fighting for decades for the mountainous region of about 145,000 people, mostly Armenian Christians. Armenia controls Nagorno-Karabakh, but under international law it belongs to Islamic Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan lost control of the area in a war that followed the collapse of the Soviet Union some 30 years ago. Since 1994 there has been a fragile ceasefire.
Thousands of people have fled the mountainous region, which is inhabited predominantly by Armenian Christians from Karabakh. Nagorno-Karabakh authorities said on Sunday that 710 soldiers had been killed since the new fighting began on September 27. So far, Azerbaijan has not provided any information on losses in its armed forces. Around 60 civilians were killed in Armenian attacks. (apa, dpa)
