The situation returns to flare up in the disputed enclave of
Nagorno-Karabakh
, where a new escalation of violence has resulted in the deaths of two
Armenian
fighters
and an
Azerbaijani
, raising the specter of the 2020
war
.
Armenia
, which today accused each other of having violated the truce, reopening ancient scars not completely healed, while
Russia
, already heavily involved in the Ukrainian conflict, said it was ready to intervene and mediate between the parties.
The fuse was lit after Azerbaijan and Nagorno-Karabakh each reported the deaths of their own fighters.
The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry accused the fighters of the self-proclaimed republic of targeting army positions in the Lachin district (under the supervision of Russian troops) by killing a conscript soldier.
Nagorno-Karabakh has in turn pointed the finger at the Azeris accusing them of killing two fighters and injuring eight others.
Baku then specified that it had taken control of several strategic heights in the disputed region and that it had conducted an operation called "Vendetta" in response to the "terrorist actions of some Armenian armed groups on the territory of Azerbaijan".
In the evening, Nagorno-Karabakh announced "partial mobilization" but added that the situation was "relatively stable" and that "measures to stabilize the situation" are being taken together with Russian forces.
Moscow for its part accused "the Azerbaijani armed forces of violating the ceasefire and said it was ready to" stabilize "the situation." The command of the Russian peacekeeping contingent is taking measures to stabilize the situation together with representatives of the Azerbaijani and Armenian side ", the Russian Defense Ministry quoted by the Tass agency said. Brussels has also entered the field. The European Union has asked for" the immediate cessation of hostilities "and" to reduce tension,
Armenia and Azerbaijan, bitter
enemies
, fought two wars - in 2020 and in the 1990s - over the Azerbaijani region of Nagorno-Karabakh, populated by Armenians.
Six weeks of fighting in the fall of 2020 claimed more than 6,500 casualties and resulted in a Russian-brokered ceasefire agreement.
Armenia has given up areas of territory it had controlled for decades and Russia has deployed some 2,000 troops to oversee the fragile truce, hampered by the tensions that continue to emerge.