SKIRMISH BETWEEN KARABAKH, AZERI TROOPS ENDS – ARMENIAN DEFENSE OFFICIAL
Interfax News Agency
Russia & CIS
March 4, 2008
Russia
The situation at the contact line between the armed forces of the
non-recognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic and Azerbaijan has stabilized,
Seiran Shakhsuvarian, a spokesman for the Armenian defense minister,
told Interfax.
The exchange of fire has stopped, he said.
Shakhsuvarian also gave details of a clash between Nagorno-Karabakh
and Azeri troops, which occurred earlier on Tuesday.
"At about 5:00 a.m. on March 4, at the contact line between
Nagorno-Karabakh and Azerbaijan, 3.5 kilometers away from the village
of Levonarch northeast of Martakert, Azeri armed forces opened fire
at Nagorno-Karabakh positions, which left a senior lieutenant of the
Nagorno-Karabakh defense army wounded," Shakhsuvarian said.
The Azeri forces seized a Nagorno-Karabakh stronghold, but the
Nagorno-Karabakh troops later forced the Azeri servicemen to retreat
to their previous positions, Shakhsuvarian said. A number of Azeri
soldiers were killed or wounded, he said.
The Armenian defense minister immediately informed OSCE chairman-
in-office personal representative Andrzej Kaspzyk of the violation
of a ceasefire by Azeri troops, he said.
The chiefs of staff of the Armenian and Azeri armed forces exchanged
information on the incident, he said.
Baku put the blame for the incident on Yerevan.