Armenia and Azerbaijan on Monday accused each other of violating a new cease-fire announced the day before in a bid to halt the fighting over Nagorno-Karabakh that has killed hundreds, possibly thousands, in just four weeks, the Associated Press reported from Yevran.
The truce that took effect Monday morning was agreed upon on Sunday after talks facilitated by the United States. It was a third attempt to establish a lasting cease-fire in the flare-up of a decades-old conflict and, just like the previous two, it was immediately challenged by claims of violation from both sides, the AP said.
Press secretary of the Minister of Defense of Armenia, Shushan Stepanyan said: "the regular ceasefire violation has been recorded at approximately 9.10 a.m. Azerbaijani side targeted positions located in a south-eastern direction, firing 5 artillery shells in that direction." By Monday afternoon, "heavy battles" were taking place in the southeast of the region, Armenian Defense Ministry spokesman Artsrun Ovannisian said.
The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry alleged that Armenian forces fired at Azerbaijani settlements and the positions of the Azerbaijani army "along the entire front, as well as on the Armenia-Azerbaijan state border." Azerbaijan also accused Armenian forces of targeting its town of Terter and the Aghjabedi region.
Azerbaijan President
Though Azerbaijan agreed to a fresh humanitarian cease-fire to exchange prisoners and bodies, Armenian forces broke the truce only minutes after it was supposed to take effect, the Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said Monday,
He also claimed that those who are pressing for a humanitarian cease-fire are in fact sending weapons to Armenia. "Why would anyone who wants a cease-fire send weapons?" he asked in an address to the nation.
On Armenia's supporters, President Aliyev said, "If you want to save the Armenian state, tell them to leave our lands," referring to Nagorno-Karabakh which has been occupied by Armenia for nearly 30 years. "They will go out with a word of yours."
Armenia cannot stand without economic, financial and political support from other countries, he said adding:
"Unfortunately, huge amounts of various types of weapons have been sent to Armenia over the past month. We have all the lists".Do not provide (them) weapons, and this issue will be over. On the one hand, they call for a cease-fire, on the other, weapons are being sent to them. What does this mean? We will not be silent on this."
Aliyev also announced the names of 17 villages liberated from Armenia's occupation a day earlier, along with the city of Gubadli.
Aliyev stressed that the co-chairs of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Minsk Group "monopolized the matter" of resolving the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, adding that it did not benefit Azerbaijan in any way, but favored Armenia.
The OSCE Minsk Group - co-chaired by France, Russia, and the U.S. - was formed in 1992 to find a peaceful solution to the conflict, but to no avail.
"Did the Minsk Group put pressure on the invader? No. Did they want to put pressure? No. I told them many times that if you want to reach a solution, impose sanctions on Armenia. You're permanent members of the U.N. Security Council (UNSC). You can solve whatever issue you want."
He pointed out that the interests of the three countries "matched" on the Nagorno-Karabakh issue. "The frozen situation pleases everyone except us. It pleases Armenia before anyone else."
Turkey calls on Minsk Group to hold talks on Nagorno-Karabakh conflict
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