7 hours agoWars in Nagorno-Karabakh, Azerbaijan warns Russian involvement
Periskopi(6 years ago)
(6 years ago)New wars erupted between Azerbaijan and Armenian ethnic forces today in the contesting Nagorno-Karabaku region, while the two sides blamed each other for blocking a peaceful solution to the conflict. The weekend clashes around Nagorno-Karabakh, a part of Azerbaijan populated and controlled by ethnic Armenians, came after State Secretary Mike Pompeii received ministers [...]
The weekend clashes around Nagorno-Karabakh, a part of Azerbaijan populated and controlled by ethnic Armenians, came after State Secretary Mike Pompeo hosted the two countries' foreign ministers in a new peace pressure Friday.
The collapse of two Russian-mediated ceasefires has already overshadowed the possibility of a quick end to fighting that erupted on September 27th.
Local officials in Nagorno-Karabakh accused Azerbaijani forces of artillery attacks in the areas of Askeran and Martun during the night, but Azerbaijan said its positions were attacked with small arms, mortars, tanks.
Armenian President Armen Sarkissian accused Baku as <x0 co-ordinated and aggressively devastating”.
He in comments published by the Armenpress news agency called on global “players to intervene immediately to reach a ceasefire.
“In the context of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Russia is a credible and pro-active mediator among conflict parties. Russia plays a crucial role here,” he said.
But Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said it was very dangerous that Armenia seek Russian military support in the conflict and that the third parties should not be involved militarily.
“I am absolutely sure of the effectiveness of the peace negotiations, but that also depends on the will of the Armenian side. Why can the people of Azerbaijan and Armenia live together in Georgia, Russia, Ukraine and other countries, but not in Karabakh?”, Aliyev said in an interview for Fox News.
Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin has said he hopes the United States will help Moscow resolve the conflict.
Karabakh's Defence Ministry announced yesterday that the total number of Armenians killed in combat had increased by 36 to 963.
Azerbaijan says 65 Azerbaijani civilians have been killed and 298 injured, but has not disclosed its military victims.
Otherwise, some 30,000 people were killed in the 1991-1994 war in Nagorno-Karabakh, which Armenians consider a part of history, while the Azerbaijanns consider occupied land to be restored to their control.
