Azerbaijan ‘tries to move’ into Armenia, causing skirmishes across the border

As fighting erupted over the border in the former Soviet republic Friday night, Azerbaijan was accused of attempting to attack its archenemy Armenia.

Both sides have accused the other for the escalation of violence amid allegations that Azerbaijan is targeting civilian facilities; at least 49 Armenian soldiers have been killed, but the number is anticipated to be higher.

Russia, an ally of Armenia, mediated a ceasefire between Caucasus neighbors in 2020, following six weeks of fighting in which 6,500 people were dead.

Azerbaijan capitalized on Putin’s preoccupation with his own brutal conflict in Ukraine, leaving him unable to provide military aid or support to Armenia.

Today, the Kremlin issued the following statement: “We express our utmost concern over the sudden escalation of the situation along the Armenian-Azerbaijani border.”

“We urge all sides to stop from further escalation, exercise restraint, and firmly follow the ceasefire.”

Online video appears to show a series of rockets being fired into Armenia in the middle of the night.

Azerbaijan asserted that its forces were responding to Armenian provocations and refuted allegations that they had targeted civilian facilities.

The dispute has lasted for decades over Nagorno-Karabakh, which is part of Azerbaijan but has been under the authority of ethnic Armenian forces backed by Armenia since the end of a separatist war in 1994.

The countries have fought for decades over Nagorno-Karabakh, which is part of Azerbaijan but has been under the authority of ethnic Armenian forces.

During fighting in 2020, an Armenian soldier shoots artillery on the front line at the border with Azerbaijan (file image)

According to a statement, Azerbaijani military forces are conducting restricted and targeted actions to neutralize Armenian firing positions.

Shortly after midnight, Azerbaijani forces reportedly began intensively bombarding Armenian military positions in the direction of Goris, Sotk, and Jermuk with artillery and large-caliber weaponry.

However, Azerbaijan’s defense ministry has accused Armenia of committing “large-scale subversive operations” near the border regions of Dashkesan, Kelbajar, and Lachin, adding that its army posts “came under fire, notably from trench mortars.”

A ceasefire was reached early this morning, but it collapsed within minutes.

Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu tweeted during a phone discussion with Azerbaijani counterpart Jeyhun Bayramov that Turkey backed with its friend Armenia and urged it to “stop its provocations” and “concentrate on peace negotiations and collaboration with Azerbaijan.”

Armenia has called to world leaders for assistance, saying early this morning, “Azerbaijani soldiers continue to employ artillery, trench mortars, and drones… military and civilian infrastructure are targeted. The adversary is attempting to advance (onto Armenian soil).

According to the office of Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, he called Emmanuel Macron, Vladimir Putin, and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken to demand a “proper response” to “Azerbaijan’s provocative conduct.”

Azerbaijan capitalized on Putin’s preoccupation with his own brutal conflict in Ukraine while he was unable to provide military aid or support to Armenia.

Pashinyan also discussed the development of tensions with Charles Michel of the European Union.

Michel, the president of the European Council, stated that the EU was “prepared to make measures to prevent further escalation” and that there was “no alternative to peace and stability in the region,” according to a translation of the call provided by Armenia.

The United States demanded an end to the violence, with Blinken expressing “grave concern” over the situation, including “reported strikes against Armenian communities and civilian infrastructure.”

Blinken stated in a statement, “As we have long made clear, there is no military solution to the problem.” We demand an immediate stop to all military hostilities.

In a border battle last week, Armenia accused Azerbaijan of killing one of its soldiers.

In August, Azerbaijan reported the death of one soldier, while the Karabakh army reported the deaths of two soldiers and over a dozen injuries.

The neighbors fought two wars – in the 1990s and in 2020 – over the Armenian-populated enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh in Azerbaijan.

After the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, ethnic Armenian rebels in Nagorno-Karabakh separated from Azerbaijan.

Under the terms of the 2020 ceasefire, Armenia surrendered large swaths of land it had controlled for decades, and Moscow deployed almost 2,000 Russian peacekeepers to monitor the tenuous truce.

During EU-mediated consultations in Brussels in April and May, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan agreed to “advance discussions” on a future peace treaty.

In 1991, when the Soviet Union disintegrated, ethnic Armenian rebels in Nagorno-Karabakh separated from Azerbaijan. The ensuing fighting resulted in approximately 30,000 deaths.

Armenia’s security council convened in order to invoke a mutual assistance and cooperation contract with Russia, which promises cooperative defense and military aid in cases of aggression against its members.

It was resolved to make an official plea to the Russian Federation to use the provisions of the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation, and Mutual Assistance.

In addition, Armenia will turn to the Collective Security Treaty Organisation, a security group chaired by Russia, and the United Nations Security Council.