An image grab taken from a video made available on the official web site of the Azerbaijani Defence Ministry on September 28, 2020, showing a combat operation during clashes between Armenian separatists and Azerbaijan in the breakaway region of Nagorno-Ka
Baku: Battles between Armenian and Azerbaijan forces have continue, with heavy artillery deployed on both sides, according to the two disputing parties.
The Armenian defence ministry reported fighting throughout the night, while Azerbaijan's defence ministry said Armenian forces were shelling the town of Terter.
The clashes between the two countries erupted as the Ministry of Defense in Azerbaijan announced that it had launched a counter-attack along the line of contact in Nagorno-Karabakh, and the army announced the destruction of 12 anti-aircraft systems of the Armenian Air Force, while the spokeswoman for the Armenian Ministry of Defense Shushan Stepanyan confirmed that the Armenian forces had captured 11 Azerbaijani armored vehicles.
The UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called on both sides to immediately stop fighting, de-escalate tensions and return to meaningful negotiations without delay, expressing deep concern over the resumption of fighting again in Nagorno-Karabakh region. He condemned the use of force and expressed regrets for the loss of life and the toll on the civilian population.
In a statement by his spokesman, the Secretary-General renewed his full support for the important role played by the co-chairs of the Minsk Group (France, Russia and the United States), and urged the two sides to work closely with them for an urgent resumption of dialogue without preconditions.
For his part, the US President Donald Trump said that the United States would seek to stop violence which has ignited between Armenia and Azerbaijan. "We're looking at it very strongly," Trump said in a Sunday evening press briefing. "We have a lot of good relationships in that area. We'll see if we can stop it."
In turn, the Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed grave concern over the resumption of large-scale hostilities in Nagorno-Karabakh, which resulted in human and material losses between the two sides.
The conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia began in 1988 over the unilateral declaration of independence of Nagorno-Karabakh from the Republic of Azerbaijan, and as a result of the hostilities that took place from 1992 to 1994, Azerbaijan lost control of Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent areas.
Since 1992, international and regional diplomatic efforts have continued to resolve the conflict, within the framework of the "Minsk Group" of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), chaired by Russia, the United States and France.
