Azerbaijan accuses Armenia of shooting as border tensions rise
Azerbaijan has said that one of its soldiers died after Armenian forces opened fire along the shared border. The accusations that Armenia denied.
Friday’s claim marks the latest in a series of incidents between the two ex-Soviet rivals.
In a statement, the Azeri defense ministry said Armenian forces had fired from several directions at its positions in Nakhchivan, an Azeri enclave separated from the remainder of Azerbaijan by Armenian territory.
Armenia’s defense ministry denied Baku’s assertion, Russia’s TASS news agency reported.
The simmering border dispute comes after last year’s six-week war over the Nagorno-Karabakh region.
The region is internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan. Until recently ethnic Armenians controlled it.
Friday’s alleged clash came a day after Azerbaijan captured six Armenian servicemen in the Kelbajar district, west of Nagorno-Karabakh.
Armenia said its forces were carrying out engineering work in the area. Meanwhile, Azerbaijan said the soldiers were part of a “reconnaissance and sabotage group”.
Also, read about the Azerbaijan and Armenia conflict here.
Tensions escalated earlier this month when Armenia accused Azerbaijan’s military of crossing its southern border to “lay siege” to a lake shared by the two countries.
Armenia said one of its soldiers died after a shooting broke out with Azerbaijan’s forces. It was an incident Baku denied responsibility for.
Last year’s conflict, which ended in November, saw Azeri troops drive ethnic Armenian forces out of swathes. Of the territory, they had controlled since the 1990s in and around Nagorno-Karabakh.
Russia eventually brokered a ceasefire.
The conflict killed more than 6,000 people on both sides. Also, led to a political crisis in Armenia. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan was widely criticized for a humiliating defeat.
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