Putin calls for immediate ceasefire in Nagorno Karabakh

Putin calls for immediate ceasefire in Nagorno Karabakh

Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed deep concern at reports on new fighting in the front lines in Nagorno-Karabakh and called on all parties to immediately cease fire, said today the Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.

"President Putin calls on parties in conflict to immediately cease fire and to exercise restraint," said Peskov told reporters.

Battles unusual tension erupted during the night yesterday and continue today between azerines and Armenian forces along the border of Nagorno-Karabakh, announced Baku and Yerevan.

According to the Armenians, "Azerbaijan unleashed the evening of Parakefis a massive attack on the border in Nagorno-Karabakh with tanks, artillery and helicopters" and separatist forces (Nagorno-Karabakh backed by Armenia) shot down a helicopter and caused "significant damage" to the enemy.

Azerbaijan immediately denied this version, asserting that no helicopter was shot down and not that the forces of all they did was to respond to an attack of the Armenian side in "large caliber artillery and grenade launchers."

The two sides said that the fighting continues today at locations "Chozavent Fizouli-and-Agder Terter-Agdam" according to Azerbaijan.

The Armenians also declared that a 12 year old boy was killed by artillery azerino a village near the border.

Nagorno-Karabakh is a region in Azerbaijan and mainly inhabited by Armenians since the time of the Soviet Union. In the early 1990s, Armenian separatists, backed by Yerevan, managed to take control of Nagorno-Karabakh in a war that claimed the lives of about 30,000 people, according to the Athens Press Agency.

A ceasefire in 1994 ended the war, but did not solve the problem and skirmishes occur periodically along the border. Yesterday's and today's battles look however clearly more important than the usual exchanges of fire small arms or artillery.

Azerbaijan, rich in oil and whose defense budget is larger than the entire budget of Armenia threatens periodically retake the separatist region if negotiations fail to produce a certain result.

Armenia, backed by Russia, answers that can confront any attack.