Agence France Presse
Feb 18 2010

Three Azerbaijanis killed in fighting: reports

Baku, Feb 18 2010

Three Azerbaijani soldiers were killed Thursday in fighting with
Armenian forces near the disputed region of Nagorny Karabakh, news
agencies reported.

The soldiers were killed after Armenian forces opened fire in the
tense Terter region on the border with Karabakh, the Trend agency and
Azeri Press Agency (APA) reported.

Trend said two other soldiers were wounded while APA said four were hurt.

A spokesman for Azerbaijan’s defence ministry refused to comment.

Tensions over Karabakh have heightened in recent months amid efforts
by Armenia and Turkey, a close ally of Azerbaijan, to establish
diplomatic ties and reopen their border after decades of hostility.

Azerbaijan fears the efforts will lead Ankara to soften its
longstanding support for Baku in the dispute.

Backed by Yerevan, ethnic Armenian forces seized control of Nagorny
Karabakh and seven surrounding districts from Azerbaijan in the early
1990s, in a war that claimed an estimated 30,000 lives.

The two former Soviet republics have cut direct economic and transport
links and failed to negotiate a settlement on the region’s status.

Armenian and Azerbaijani forces are spread across a ceasefire line in
and around Nagorny Karabakh, often facing each other at close range,
and shootings are common.