Radio Liberty, Czech Rep.
May 29 2006
Armenian Soldier Killed In Fresh Skirmish On Azeri Border
By Emil Danielyan
Armenia’s Defense Ministry reported on Monday that one of its
soldiers has been fatally shot in what it described as a truce
violation by Azerbaijani forces in the tensest section of the
Armenian-Azerbaijani border.
The ministry said in a statement that Sergeant-Major Levon Adamian,
20, was wounded in the chest and died as he was rushed to hospital
late on Saturday. It said the incident occurred near the northern
Armenian town of Noyemberian. No other details were reported.
Adamian is at least the second Armenian soldier killed in the area
bordering Georgia since February. Skirmishes between Armenian and
Azerbaijani troops deployed there appear to have become more frequent
in recent months, with each side accusing the other of breaching the
ceasefire. The Azerbaijani military did not report any fighting in
the westernmost section of the heavily militarized frontier in recent
days, though.
According to the Azerbaijani news agency APA, an Azerbaijani soldier
was wounded and hospitalized on Saturday about 300 kilometers east of
the area, along the main Armenian-Azerbaijani line of contact around
Nagorno-Karabakh. The information was not immediately confirmed by
the Defense Ministry in Baku. The ministry said earlier that a
19-year-old Azerbaijani army conscript, Egdar Hajigayibov, was shot
and killed by Armenian forces near a village just north of Karabakh
on May 17.
The latest upsurge in Armenian-Azerbaijani shootouts followed the
collapse of long-awaited talks between Presidents Ilham Aliev and
Robert Kocharian near Paris last February. The two leaders are
scheduled to meet again in Bucharest early next week amid fresh hopes
for a breakthrough in the Karabakh peace process.
High-ranking diplomats from France, Russia and the United States
sounded cautiously optimistic about the outcome of the summit as they
wrapped up a two-day visit to Baku and Yerevan last Thursday. In a
joint statement, they said the conflicting parties are now `at the
point where a mutually beneficial agreement is achievable.’
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress