They advanced into that area on Saturday in what the Russian Defense Ministry called a violation of the ceasefire that stopped the 2020 Armenian-Azerbaijani war. The ministry said Russian peacekeepers demanded that the Azerbaijan pull back its troops to “their previously occupied positions.”
The Azerbaijani military said, for its part, that it “took necessary measures” to stop Armenia sending weapons and military personnel through dirt roads running parallel to section of the Lachin corridor blocked by Baku since December.
Yerevan as well as Karabakh’s leadership strongly denied any military supplies. They said the Azerbaijani advance constitutes a gross violation of the truce accord brokered by Moscow.
According to the authorities in Stepanakert, Russian peacekeepers deployed to a part of the strategic hill later on Saturday to stop the Azerbaijani forces from advancing further and try to get them to retreat from the area.
Artur Harutiunian, a senior Karabakh lawmaker, said on Monday that the Russians are continuing to negotiate with them. He said the high ground occupied by Azerbaijani soldiers overlooks the barely passable bypass road leading to the Armenian border.
“That road is very visible from the height occupied by them and it cannot be used now for security reasons,” he told RFE/RL’s Armenian Service. “They can shoot or shell.”
The Karabakh Armenian army said, meanwhile, that it took “preventive measures” on Monday morning to thwart an Azerbaijani attack on another hill located in the same area. It did not elaborate.
The Karabakh authorities also accused the Azerbaijani army of continuing to fire at Karabakh Armenian villagers cultivating land in their communities located along “the line of contact.” Azerbaijan’s Defense Ministry claimed that its troops opened fire on Saturday to stop Karabakh forces from digging trenches “under the guise of agricultural work.”
Arayik Harutiunian, the Karabakh president, discussed the worsening security situation at an emergency meeting with local officials and political leaders. He complained that “international actors” content themselves with making “declarative statements” instead of forcing Baku to respect the ceasefire.
“Therefore, we need to soberly assess the whole gravity of the situation … and draw necessary conclusions,” Harutiunian’s office quoted him as saying. It gave no other details.
Earlier in the day, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev’s office said that it is again inviting “representatives of Karabakh’s Armenian community” to visit Baku for talks on Karabakh’s “reintegration” into Azerbaijan and “infrastructure projects.”
The Karabakh leaders rejected the same offer made by Baku two weeks ago, saying that the talks should take place at the Karabakh headquarters of Russian peacekeepers and focus on “humanitarian, technical and humanitarian issues.”