BAKU Sputnik) — On Saturday, Armenia and Azerbaijan noted a sharp escalation of the situation in the mountainous Nagorno-Karabakh area, with both sides accusing each other of violating the ceasefire that has been in place since 1994.
"Despite the numerous warnings, the Armenian side continues the shelling of [Azeri] settlements," ministry's spokesman Vagif Dyargahly said.
"The Minister of Defense of Azerbaijan will order powerful artillery strikes against the Armenian positions in Hankendi and other areas, if the Armenian side continues the shelling," Dyargahly stressed.
The conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh began in 1988, when the Armenian-dominated autonomous region sought to secede from the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic, before proclaiming independence after the Soviet Union's collapse in 1991. In September 2015, the conflict escalated, with the sides blaming each other for violating the truce.
