MOSCOW: Azerbaijan announced a roadblock on the only land approach to Nagorno-Karabakh on Sunday. It is followed by accusations of border gunshots by both sides.
Nagorno-Karabakh, a primarily Armenian region of Azerbaijan, broke away from Baku in the early 1990s.
Azerbaijan said it has set up a roadblock on the Karabakh road to prevent Armenia from transporting weapons.
Azerbaijan “took appropriate measures to establish control at the starting point of the road,” the foreign ministry said.
“Border security and road safety are Azerbaijan’s responsibility and essential for national security, state sovereignty, and the rule of law.”
While Armenia called the Lachin corridor checkpoint at the Hakari bridge a flagrant violation of the 2020 ceasefire deal. The accord requires Russian peacekeepers to oversee the Lachin corridor, the only road across Azerbaijan that connects Armenia to Nagorno-Karabakh.
“We call on the Russian Federation to ultimately implement the trilateral statement,”. Armenia’s foreign ministry stated of the deal struck by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Moreover, Azeri officials uploaded photos of the bridge on social media with trucks and soldiers blocking one side.
While, Azeri forces opened fire on an Armenian position in Sotk, an Armenian village east of Lake Sevan, at 0750 GMT, killing Artyom Poghosyan, according to Armenia’s defence ministry. Azerbaijan denies killing the soldier.
Afterward, Azerbaijan then reported that Armenian soldiers fired on Azeri units in Lachin at 1110 GMT, which Armenia disputed.
After a second battle that ended in a Russian-brokered truce upheld by Russian forces, Azerbaijan retook land around the enclave in 2020.
Since Dec. 12, Azeri environmental activists have clashed with Russian peacekeepers on the Lachin corridor.
Armenia claims government-backed demonstrators are blocking Karabakh. Azerbaijan claims it allows convoys and aid through.
Moreover, In recent months, Armenia has frequently urged Moscow to help peace and guarantee unhindered passage
