BAKU, December 9. /TASS/. The Armenian Armed Forces opened fire on Azerbaijani positions in the Kalbajar district along the border between the two countries, the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said in a statement on Thursday.

"The Armenian Armed Forces staged another provocation on the state border in the Kalbajar district, where Azerbaijani positions came under fire by Armenian units stationed in the Basarkechar district of the country at about 03:00 pm on December 9," the statement reads.

According to the Defense Ministry, the Azerbaijani ministry took appropriate retaliatory measures. "Our troops maintain full control of the situation," the statement adds.

Intense fighting between the Armenian and Azerbaijani armed forces broke out in the border areas of Armenia's Syunik Province on November 16. Yerevan said that the Azerbaijani armed forces had launched an offensive into Armenia's territory, which threatened an international highway connecting the Armenian capital with the country's southern regions and Iran. Baku laid the blame on Yerevan, accusing the Armenian Armed Forces of staging a provocation. According to the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry, Armenian troops attacked Azerbaijani positions.

Given the situation, Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu held separate telephone talks with his counterparts from Armenia and Azerbaijan. The Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement that following the conversations, the Armenian and Azerbaijani defense chiefs took measures to stabilize the situation on the border.