The OSCE Minsk Group states that the tension has increased due to violation of ceasefire from the Azerbaijani side

The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group state that tensions on the contact line between the armed forces of Nagorno-Karabakh and Azerbaijan have increased in recent days as a result of violation of the ceasefire from the Azerbaijani side.

“According to information received from several reliable sources, on May 15 the Azerbaijani armed forces fired a rocket, striking at military equipment located on the other side of the line of contact. On May 16-17, the Armenian armed forces countered with mortar fire of various caliber. These actions by both sides constitute significant violations of the ceasefire regime and cause alarm ” – The statement circulated in the evening of May 18 by the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group on the Karabakh settlement, the ambassadors Igor Popov (Russia), Stefan Visconti (France) and Richard Hoagland (USA) said.

Noting that there are conflicting reports of losses, the mediators add that both they and the office of the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office continue to collect information in order to make a more complete and accurate picture of the current situation.

“The co-chairs condemn the latest violations of the ceasefire regime on the contact line between the Armed Forces of Nagorno-Karabakh and Azerbaijan and urge the parties to take all necessary measures to prevent further escalation of the conflict,” the statement says.

Earlier on the same day, the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, made almost the same statement.