Armenia reports ‘fierce combat’ with Azeri forces near key town in Karabakh

Armenia says “fierce combat” has taken place with Azerbaijani forces near a key stronghold in the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region.

The Armenian defense ministry said on Saturday that the clashes occurred near the town of Shusha, located some 15 kilometers from Karabakh's main city of Stepanakert.

Shushan Stepanyan, the ministry spokeswoman, reported "especially intensive and fierce combat" overnight outside Shusha, and added that numerous attacks from Azerbaijan had been foiled.

Armenia also claimed that there was regular shelling on Shusha throughout the night, with the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry rejecting the claim as "completely untrue.”

Meanwhile, Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev announced on Saturday that  Azerbaijani army had liberated 16 more villages in the Karabakh region from Armenia's occupation.

Since September 27, a new wave of clashes, the worst in decades, has been going on between Azeri troops and the Armenian-backed separatists of the Nagorno-Karabakh region, with both Yerevan and Baku accusing each other of provocation.

The contested region, home to ethnic Armenian people, is internationally recognized as Azerbaijani territory, but it has been under the control of Armenian-backed separatists since the early 1990s after they seized it by military force.

Following the flare-up, Russia brokered two ceasefires to bring to an end the deadly conflict, but its efforts to bring peace to the mountainous region failed as Yerevan and Baku continued to violate the agreements.

Russia ready to provide Armenia with 'all necessary help’ as Karabakh 4th truce falls apart

Russia will provide Armenia with “all necessary assistance,” if an ongoing fighting with Azerbaijan expands to Armenian territories.

The Kremlin said on Saturday that Russian President Vladimir Putin had discussed the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh with his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron.

The Kremlin said the leaders expressed serious concern over the large-scale clashes between Armenian and Azeri forces in the region and the alleged involvement of mercenaries and Takfiri terrorists from Syria and Libya in the conflict.

Russia a close ally to Armenia is also in talks with Turkey, which supports Azerbaijan in the conflict.

‘Takfiri terrorists should in no way be allowed to enter Karabakh’

The spokesman for the Iranian Armed Forces Brigadier General Abolfazl Shekarchi reiterated on Saturday that the Islamic Republic’s territorial integrity is of utmost significance and the country would not tolerate the presence of Takfiri terrorists near its borders.

Underlining that the Takfiris should not be allowed to enter the region in any way, Shekarchi said, “The presence of Takfiri terrorists is intolerable for Iran, and the Islamic Republic certainly does not tolerate this presence at all."

The top commander also said Iran shares borders with the Republic of Azerbaijan and Armenia, and that the two South Caucasus neighbors should be extremely careful that the slightest attack on the Iranian soil will be met with a "decisive response."

Tehran has put forward a peace initiative aimed at bringing an end to the conflict, which has killed more than 1,200 civilians so far.

Iran’s initiative aims to promote ‘lasting peace’ in Nagorno-Karabakh: Araqchi

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Political Affairs Abbas Araqchi says the Islamic Republic’s initiative aims to promote “lasting peace” and settle the decades-long dispute between Baku and Yerevan.

Last week, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Political Affairs Abbas Araqchi traveled to Baku on a regional trip to present the initiative and held talks with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov during his visit.

The tour also took him to Armenia, Russia and Turkey.

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