Since July 12, the tension had risen a notch in the secessionist enclave of Nagorny Karabakh, a territory populated mainly by Armenians and supported by Armenia.
On that day, fighting broke out on the northern border between Armenia and Azerbaijan, shortly after the Azerbaijani president threatened to quit the peace talks, ruling that Baku had the right to seek "a military solution. to conflict ”.
Since then, nearly twenty people had died in clashes reported daily?
A new milestone was crossed this Sunday.
What are the latest developments?
Heavy fighting broke out once again between Azerbaijani forces and separatists in the Nagorno-Karabakh region.
"Deaths and injuries have been reported among civilians and soldiers," said the Azerbaijani presidency, while the Karabakh public mediator for his part referred to "civilian victims" among the population of the region.
Armenia said a woman and a child were killed.
The Karabakh separatists for their part decreed "martial law and general mobilization", while Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pachinian indicated, according to the Russian agency Interfax, that the separatist and Armenian forces "successfully resist" a opposing attack.
Azerbaijan previously reported that one of its helicopters was shot down but its crew was unharmed.
He claims to have destroyed 12 anti-aircraft batteries.
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“Early this morning, the Azerbaijani side launched bombardments all along the line of contact.
They are also bombing Stepanakert (the capital), we call on the population to take shelter, ”the spokesman for the separatist presidency said on his Facebook page.
"The Karabakh armed forces have so far defeated (Azerbaijan's) plans, inflicting heavy losses" on the adversary, the region's defense ministry said.
Why this rise in tensions?
The conflict is not new.
We have to go back to the period after the Bolshevik revolution of 1917 to understand what is at stake.
Already disputed by the Armenians and the Azerbaijanis, this territory of the Russian Empire was attached by Moscow in 1921 to the Azerbaijani Soviet Socialist Republic with, from 1923, a statute of autonomy.
Since the end of the 1980s, many conflicts have erupted in this territory.
In 1991, Nagorno Karabakh proclaimed its independence from Baku with the support of Yerevan, the Armenian capital.
After the breakup of the USSR, two major offensives were led by Armenia in 1992 and 1993. A year later, a ceasefire negotiated by Moscow came into effect.
The Armenians then control about a fifth of the territory of Azerbaijan, including Nagorny Karabakh.
It was that same year that the “Minsk Group” was created to attempt mediation.
It is made up of the United States, France and Russia.
Despite the signing of a declaration calling for a “peaceful settlement” to the conflict in 2008, the two countries never concluded a peace agreement.
Since then, battles have broken out regularly, leaving the specter of open war wide open.
What consequences?
The two camps seem to have recorded the escalation of the conflict.
In the wake of the bombings.
Each accuses each other of being at the origin of the first Sunday attack.
In a speech on television, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev pledged victory.
"The Azerbaijani army is fighting today on its territory, defends its territorial integrity, delivers devastating blows to the enemy," he explained.
Our cause is just and we will win ”.
For his part, the Armenian Prime Minister called on his population to “be ready to defend the sacred homeland”.
On Facebook, Nikol Pachinian wrote: “Let us firmly support our state, our army […] and we will win.
Long live the glorious Armenian army!
"
By decreeing martial law and general mobilization, Armenia now urges "all personnel to report to military stations", we can still read on the social network.
How is the international community reacting?
In the morning this Sunday, Russia called for an "immediate ceasefire".
In a press release, the Russian Foreign Ministry also called for negotiations to be started in order to stabilize the situation, ”adding that“ intense bombardments are occurring along the line of contact on both sides ”.
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France also quickly communicated.
Paris said this Sunday "deeply concerned by the large-scale clashes underway in Nagorno-Karabakh", and calls on the belligerents to "immediately cease hostilities and resume dialogue".
In its press release, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs "with its Russian and American partners" reiterates its commitment "with a view to achieving a negotiated and lasting settlement of the conflict in this region", "with respect for international law".
In the process, the European Union called for the cessation of hostilities and "an immediate return to negotiations".
