ITAR-TASS, Russia Saturday 6:08 PM GMT Armenia’s defense ministry says situation in Nagorno-Karabakh calm YEREVAN September 16 The situation in Nagorno-Karabakh has remained relatively calm over the past week, Armenia’s Defense Ministry said on Saturday, referring to information from Nagorno-Karabakh’s Army of Defense. YEREVAN, September 16. /TASS/. The situation in Nagorno-Karabakh has remained relatively calm over the past week, Armenia’s Defense Ministry said on Saturday, referring to information from Nagorno-Karabakh’s Army of Defense. "On September 10-16, the tactical situation along the line disengaging the rival Armed Forces of Nagorno-Karabakh and Azerbaijan has remained relatively quiet," the statement said. Over the past week, "the adversary violated the ceasefire mainly with small arms of various calibers, conducting over 1,500 shots in the direction of Karabakh positions," it said. "Leading elements of the Army of Defense retain full control at the frontline and stay vigilant carrying on combat duty," the Armenian defense ministry said. The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict The highland region of Nagorno-Karabakh (Mountainous Karabakh) is a mostly Armenian-populated enclave inside the sovereign territory of Azerbaijan. It was the first zone of inter-ethnic tensions and violence to appear on the map of the former USSR. Even almost a quarter of a century after the breakup of the Soviet Union, Karabakh remains a so-called 'frozen conflict' on the post-Soviet space, as the region is the subject of a dispute between Azerbaijan and the local Armenian population that draws on strong support from fellow-countrymen in neighboring Armenia. In 1988, hostilities broke out there between the forces reporting to the government in Baku and Armenian residents, which resulted in the region's de facto independence. In 1994, a ceasefire was reached but the relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia remain strained ever since then. Russia, France and the U.S. co-chair the Minsk Group of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, which attempts to broker an end to hostilities and the conflict.