Neighboring territory of the former Soviet republics – located on the border with Azerbaijan – and it has long been at odds with the war that ended in 1994.
Despite the conflict ending with the Russian-brokered ceasefire, military clashes between the two sides are not uncommon.
Armenia said it was responding to missile attacks by its neighbor on Sunday, while Azerbaijan blamed Armenia for the clashes.
In response to the firing on control by Azerbaijan, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinya tweeted that “2 helicopters and 3 UAVs have been shot down in his country, 3 tanks have been destroyed.”
As a result of growing tensions, the Armenian government has decided to impose martial law and take orders for “general consolidation”, Pashinien said in a later tweet.
Armenia had earlier claimed that its neighbor had targeted civilians in peaceful areas, including the region’s capital, Stepanakert.
An official of the self-proclaimed public republic of Arteschak, Artak Beglairan, an independent Armenian state that does not have international recognition and controls the Nagorno-Karabakh region, said in a tweet that a mother and child had been killed.
Baglarin also said that dozens of people had been injured and major structural damage had been done, adding: “Azerbaijan has deliberately targeted civilian objects.”
However, Azerbaijan suggested that Armenia was responsible for the recent clashes between the two countries.
Hikmet Hajiyev, an aide to the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan and head of the presidential administration’s foreign policy affairs department, tweeted on Sunday: “There are reports of dead and wounded in civilian and military services. Many homes have been extensively damaged. And civilian infrastructure.”
Accusing Armenia of being an “act of aggression and use of force”, Hajiyev added that “Armenia has full responsibility for its political-military leadership.”
At least 14 civilians were injured in border villages due to artillery and tank fire from the broken Armenian enclave, according to state media Azertech. CNN is unable to independently verify claims from both.
“Currently, the Azerbaijani army is taking retaliatory action and our troops have full control over the operational situation,” the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said in a statement on Sunday.
But the Armenian Foreign Ministry said in a statement: “We strongly condemn the aggression of Azerbaijan’s military-political leadership.”
“Azerbaijan’s military-political leadership bears full responsibility for the consequences of their aggression,” the statement added.
The fighting between the two sides has been escalating in the last few months.
In 2016, dozens of soldiers from both countries were killed during the clashes. Two years ago, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on Armenia and Azerbaijan to commit themselves to immediate de-escalation and continued dialogue following reports of violence and casualties on the border.
The Nagorno-Karabakh region is internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan but is ruled by a majority group of ethnic Armenians.
CNN’s Eliot c. MC Laughlin, Gul Tuisuz, Holly Tan and Joshua Berliner contributed to this report.
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