At least 16 dead after Armenia and Azerbaijan border clashes

[Annihilus]

UN urges calm after Azerbaijani general killed in fighting involving artillery and drones

Armenia and Azerbaijan forces have fought with heavy artillery and drones, leaving at least 16 people killed on both sides including an Azerbaijani general, in the worst outbreak of hostilities in years.

Skirmishes on the volatile border between the two south Caucasus nations began on Sunday. Azerbaijan said it has lost 11 servicemen and one civilian in three days of fighting, and Armenia said four of its troops were killed on Tuesday.

The two neighbours have been locked in conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh, a region of Azerbaijan that has been under the control of ethnic Armenian forces backed by Armenia since a war there ended in 1994. International efforts to settle the conflict have stalled.

Armenian and Azerbaijani forces have frequently engaged in clashes. The current skirmishes appear to mark the most serious spike in hostilities since 2016 when scores were killed in four days of fighting.

The latest incident began when Armenian and Azerbaijani troops exchanged fire in the northern section of their border. Officials in both countries blamed each other for starting the fighting and said that sporadic shelling has continued.

Azerbaijan’s defence ministry said two senior officers were killed in fighting on Tuesday along with five other servicemen.

Armenian officials claimed that Azerbaijani drones launched an attack on the town of Berd, targeting civilian infrastructure. Defence ministry spokeswoman Shushan Stepanyan said that one of Azerbaijani drones was downed.

Stepanyan also charged that the Azerbaijani military used civilians as shields, placing artillery close to the village of Dondar Gushchu in the Tovuz district about 10km (six miles) from the border.

The Azerbaijani military denied losing a drone and in turn claimed that its forces shot down an Armenian drone and destroyed an Armenian artillery system along with its crew.

As hostilities continued, Armenia also accused Azerbaijan of launching cyberattacks on Armenian government websites.

The Armenian prime minister, Nikol Pashinyan, on Monday accused Azerbaijan of provoking the clashes and warned that it would “bear responsibility for the unpredictable consequences”. The Azerbaijani president, Ilham Aliyev, denounced what he described as “another provocation of Armenia” and vowed to protect Azerbaijan’s national territory.

Turkey, which has close ethnic and cultural ties with Azerbaijan, has voiced strong support to Baku in the conflict.

The US and Russia, which co-chair the Minsk group of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe that has tried to negotiate a settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, have condemned the violence and called for restraint.

Russia’s foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov, had separate calls with his counterparts in Armenia and Azerbaijan on Monday to call for an immediate ceasefire.

Vladimir Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said that Moscow was “deeply worried” about the fighting and stands ready to play mediator.

The UN ecretary eneral, António Guterres, also expressed worry. His spokesman, Stéphane Dujarric, said in a statement that the UN chief “urges an immediate end to the fighting and calls on all involved to take immediate steps to deescalate the situation and refrain from provocative rhetoric”.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/20...border-clashes

[BarbarTurk]

if they want war, we will gladly.

[kundur]

Armenians would be decimated in a 1-to-1 conflict against Azerbaijan. However, it seems like they are member of Russia's Eurasian Nato. Russia also has a military base in Armenia and ensures the security of Armenia. It looks like Armenians are assured by that presence in their country.

It might also be that Russia pushes for escalation in that region from time to time.
Armenia is landlocked and has horrible relations with virtually all of its neighbors except from Iran. This situation fits Russian interests, because it simply means that Armenia will want to have the security status quo conducted open ended. On the other hand, Azerbaijan is also being given the message that things are not so easy in that region and they might need to review their policies with countries around them.

[FinalFlash]

Armenians would be decimated in a 1-to-1 conflict against Azerbaijan. However, it seems like they are member of Russia's Eurasian Nato. Russia also has a military base in Armenia and ensures the security of Armenia. It looks like Armenians are assured by that presence in their country.

It might also be that Russia pushes for escalation in that region from time to time.
Armenia is landlocked and has horrible relations with virtually all of its neighbors except from Iran. This situation fits Russian interests, because it simply means that Armenia will want to have the security status quo conducted open ended. On the other hand, Azerbaijan is also being given the message that things are not so easy in that region and they might need to review their policies with countries around them.

Doesn't seem like it. Another 10 dead Azerbaijani soldiers today after Armenian forces took a village inside the "official" Azeri territory. Russia and EEU nations would theoretically only enter into the mix when there is a direct attack on Armenia. This was a direct attack on the Armenian Republic and more specifically, the region of Tavush which has absolutely nothing to do with the disputed region of Artsakh. That would qualify as Azerbaijani aggression by anyone's standards.

Armenia is in horrible relations with Turkey and Azerbaijan. As a matter of fact, Armenia has no diplomatic relations with either country whereas Armenia is on good terms with Iran and lukewarm with Georgia though yes, Armenia's geographic location is not ideal whatsoever.

[Dr_Maul]

Too bad that this has to happen, but I doubt things will be better any time soon

[Armenian Bishop]

https://armenianweekly.com/2020/07/1...tavush-border/

In addition to fighting on the ground, Armenian officials have been forced to contend with misinformation from the Defense Ministry of Azerbaijan and Azeri sources, which have been circulating doctored photographs and spreading misinformation on their progress in the ongoing military operations. Stepanyan, who has been providing regular updates on her Facebook account, flat out denied a claim by Azerbaijan officials that they downed an Armenian-owned X-55 unmanned aerial drone. A spokesperson from Azerbaijan’s Defense Ministry is also threatening the destruction of the Metsamor Nuclear Power Plant.

[Annihilus]

There is a clear reason why Armenia (read Russia) is attacking Tavuz. They want to cut the Turkey-Georgia-Azarbaijan gas and train lines. This will not end well for Armenia.

[Peloponnesian pride]

Well done armenians

[PaleoEuropean]

[FinalFlash]

There is a clear reason why Armenia (read Russia) is attacking Tavuz. They want to cut the Turkey-Georgia-Azarbaijan gas and train lines. This will not end well for Armenia.

You mispelled 'Tavush', which happens to be a village inside the Armenian Republic. Armenia doesn't want to cut any pipelines because Armenia will face serious backlash and international sanctions from those who have heavily invested in Baku oil.

What Armenia can do is bomb the Mingavechir water reservoirs to smitherines though.

Also, did you hear about how Azerbaijan supposedly wanted to launch an attack on Armenia's nuclear powerplant? Lol it looks like they want to take themselves out plus the entire region.