Interfax, Russia
Nov 13 2014
Russia-led bloc warns against escalation after helicopter downed in Azerbaijan
Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) Secretary General
Nikolay Bordyuzha has said that the situation in Nagornyy Karabakh
cannot be allowed to escalate following the downing of an Armenian
helicopter by Azeri troops on 12 November, privately-owned Russian
military news agency Interfax-AVN reported on 13 November.
“We are deeply convinced that this situation cannot be allowed to
escalate. This turn of events can be staved off primarily by refusal
to use force, meticulous compliance with ceasefire agreements and the
deliberate denial of provocative actions,” Bordyuzha said.
“The destruction of the helicopter was a dangerous show of violence,”
the CSTO secretariat said in an official statement, in which it
described the situation in the south Caucasus region as “becoming more
and more critical”.
The statement from the CSTO secretariat said that the helicopter had
been shot down while conducting a training exercise and that none of
its crew had survived; however, in an official statement the Azeri
Defence Ministry had said that the helicopter had attempted to attack
Azeri military emplacements.