ZHeavy fighting broke out again between Azerbaijan and Armenia in the Caucasus on Tuesday night. The Armenian Defense Ministry in Yerevan said that Azerbaijani troops attacked Armenian positions in three places with large-caliber weapons. This was reported by Russian news agencies. In Baku, the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said that a large-scale attempt at sabotage by Armenians had sparked the fighting. “The entire responsibility for the situation lies with the military-political leadership of Armenia,” it said.
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced on Tuesday that 49 soldiers had been killed on their own side. According to his government, he had called the President of the protecting power Russia, Vladimir Putin, on Tuesday night. Pashinyan spoke of an Azerbaijani attack to which there must be an international reaction. Putin and he therefore agreed to stay in touch. The Armenian head of government also alarmed French President Emmanuel Macron, media in Yerevan reported.
The former Soviet republics have been at war with each other over the Nagorno-Karabakh region for decades. However, according to Armenian information, the exclave was not attacked this time, the attacks hit positions near the cities of Goris, Sotk and Dschermuk. These are on the territory of Armenia.
Disputed Nagorno-Karabakh belongs to Azerbaijan but is inhabited by Armenians. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, Armenian forces secured control of the area in a war from 1992 to 1994 and occupied large parts of Azerbaijan. In 2020, Azerbaijan regained its territories and seized strategically important points in Nagorno-Karabakh. Russia, the protecting power of the Christian Armenians, is monitoring the ceasefire agreed four months later. Since then, the European Union has also made many efforts to resolve the conflict.
The Foreign Office warned Germans in the region to be cautious, and that the fighting could not be ruled out. Anyone in an area affected by hostilities should go to a safe place and wait there until it is safe to leave. It is Jermuk that is popular with foreign tourists, as there is a well-known mineral spa there.
