Russian peacekeeping forces stationed in Artsakh
Russia’s Defense Ministry said that Azerbaijan was responsible for violating the ceasefire at the line of contact in Artsakh, when its forces launched an attack on Artsakh positions on Wednesday, killing two soldiers and injuring 19 others.
“Aggravation of the situation is recorded in the zone of responsibility of the peacekeeping contingent. The armed forces of Azerbaijan violated the ceasefire regime in the area of Saribaba hill. The command of the Russian peacekeeping force, together with the representatives of the Azerbaijani and Armenian sides, are taking measures to stabilize the situation,” the Russian Defense Ministry said on Wednesday.
This was the second such announcement by Moscow, which on Tuesday blamed Azerbaijan for breaching the ceasefire in Artsakh on Monday, when it launched an attack on Artsakh positions in Berdzor (Lachin) as a result of which an Artsakh soldier was wounded.
Starting at around 9 a.m. local time on Wednesday, Azerbaijani forces targeted Artsakh Defense Army military positions, as well as the permanent location of the military units using mortars and grenade launchers, drones and other heavy artillery.
The Artsakh defense ministry reported that Gurgen Gabrielyan and Artur Khachatryan were killed during these fresh attacks. The ministry also reported that 14 soldiers were injured.
Wednesday’s escalation of Azerbaijan’s aggression prompted Artsakh President Arayik Harutyunyan to announce a partial military mobilization, his office reported.
Artsakh’s foreign ministry, in a statement issued on Wednesday, strongly condemned the escalation of aggression by Azerbaijan, calling it “another brutal attempt to violate the peace and stability in the region and discredit the [Russian] peacekeeping mission.” The statement added that the recent attacks were party of Azerbaijan’s anti-Armenian policy.
This story was updated to reflect that the number of injured has changed to 19.