Russian Foreign Ministry made statement on Nagorno-Karabakh conflict

Baku, Azerbaijan, Apr. 22 Trend: Russia considers two ceasefire agreements signed between Azerbaijan and Armenia in 1995 and 1996 as the foundation of cessation of hostilities in Nagorno-Karabakh region, the Russian Foreign Ministry said. "In the context of the situation around Nagorno-Karabakh, the Russian side insists that the 1994 agreement on the ceasefire and the agreement on the strengthening of the ceasefire regime in Nagorno-Karabakh conflict reached in 1995 have no time limitations and continue to form the foundation of the cessation of hostilities in the conflict zone," the ministry said in a Thursday statement. On the night of April 2, 2016, all the frontier positions of Azerbaijan were subjected to heavy fire from the Armenian side, which used large-caliber weapons, mortars and grenade launchers. The armed clashes resulted in deaths and injuries among the Azerbaijani population. Azerbaijan responded with a counter-attack, which led to liberation of several strategic heights and settlements. Military operations were stopped on the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian armies on Apr. 5 at 12:00 (UTC/GMT + 4 hours) with the consent of the sides, Azerbaijan's Defense Ministry earlier said. Ignoring the agreement, the Armenian side again started violating the ceasefire. The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.