STEPANAKERT, NKR (A.W.)—An Armenian serviceman was killed by Azerbaijani fire a day after the heads of delegation of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Minsk Group countries expressed concern about the escalation in violence along the Line of Contact and Armenia-Azerbaijan border, and called the status quo “unsustainable.”
According to the Defense Ministry of the Nagorno-Karabagh Republic (NKR), NKR Defense Army serviceman Erik Grigoryan (b. 1995) was killed early on Dec. 4 in a gunfight following a penetration attempt by the Azerbaijani army into the territory of Nagorno-Karabagh.
The incident took place in Talish, in the northeastern part of the Line of Contact, according to the statement released by the NKR Ministry of Defense. The report explains that the NKR Defense Army noticed the advancement of the Azerbaijan Army and were able to push them back to their initial positions. It is believed that the Azerbaijani Army suffered casualties.
In addition to the incident, the Azerbaijani Army also violated the ceasefire regime at least 80 times on Dec. 3-4, with more than 650 shots fired in the direction of NKR military positions, by way of rifle and artillery weaponry, including mortar, rocket-propelled grenade, and heavy machine gun. The NKR Defense Army is currently taking retaliatory actions, to supress the Azerbaijani attacks, according to the Defense Ministry.
On Dec. 3, the heads of the delegation of the OSCE Minsk Group countries —Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, and France’s State Secretary for European Affairs Harlem Desir—said that they remain united in their commitment to mediating a peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabagh conflict, and welcomed the upcoming meeting between Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev and Armenia’s President Serge Sarkisian.
The meeting will take place this month under the auspices of the Minsk Group Co-Chairs. “There must also be dialogue between Armenians and Azerbaijanis to build trust between neighboring peoples. We encourage the sides to work with the Co-Chairs to support programs that bring together people affected by the conflict,” read a part of the statement, released by the Minsk Group.
Source: Armenian Weekly
Link: Artsakh Soldier Killed by Azerbaijani Fire