Russian peacekeepers seen de-mining areas of Artsakh
For a third consecutive day, the Russian defense ministry blamed Azerbaijan for violating the ceasefire in Karabakh, on Thursday pointing to at least four instances in the last 24 hours.
The Russian defense ministry acknowledged that the attacks on Artsakh positions on Wednesday that left two Artsakh soldiers dead and 19 others wounded were in fact the result of Azerbaijan’s violation of the cease fire.
“During the past 24 hours, 4 cases of violation of the ceasefire by the Azerbaijani armed forces were recorded in the area of responsibility of the Russian peacekeeping troops in the regions of Saribaba and Buzdukh Heights, as well in the Martakert region. As a result, 2 representatives of the armed forces of Nagorno-Karabakh were killed and 14 were injured (the Artsakh Defense Ministry upped the number of wounded to 19),” the statement said.
Moscow emphasized that the command of the Russian peacekeepers, in cooperation with the Azerbaijani and Armenian sides, resolved these incidents, there were no violations of the line of contact.
On Tuesday, Russia blamed Azerbaijan for the military flareup in Berdzor (Lachin), during which an Artsakh soldier was wounded. On Wednesday, Russia again called out Azerbaijan for violating the ceasefire in Artsakh in the area of responsibility of Russian peacekeeping forces.
Russian presidential spokesperson Dmitri Peskov on Thursday emphasized the need for the implementation of the Moscow-led agreements between the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan.
“There are trilateral documents that are considered to be the main starting point. The important is to implement all the obligations assumed by the sides with these documents. If there are questions, they definitely need to be answered. At the same time, we have close contacts with the Armenian side at various levels which will allow us to clarify the existing issues,” Peskov said.
On Thursday, the Artsakh Defense Ministry said that while tactical situation at the line of contact was “relatively calm” as of 9 a.m. local time on Thursday, it warned that the situation continue to remain tense, with Azerbaijani forces continuing their sporadic provocations.
The defense ministry also provided an update on the condition of the four of the 19 wounded soldiers, who were more severely injured during Wednesday’s attack. It said that three soldiers were in serious condition, while one was in critical condition.
“Measures continue being taken by mediation of the Russian contingent command to stabilize the situation,” the Artsakh military said.