MOSCOW, September 19, Victor Zhdanov. Azerbaijan announced “local anti-terrorist measures” in Nagorno-Karabakh. According to regional authorities, fire was opened along the entire line of contact. Explosions were heard in Stepanakert and an air raid siren sounded. How events are developing — in the material.
Line of ContactIn Baku, the Armenians were accused of provocations, including with human casualties. Thus, three policemen were killed when a car was blown up on the Akhmedbeyli — Fuzuli — Shusha highway.
The army is solving anti-terrorist tasks, strikes are carried out only on military targets, the civilian population and civilian infrastructure will not be harmed, Azerbaijan assures.
< br>The local population is advised through SMS services, as well as through loudspeakers and information leaflets, to stay away from military installations and not to support Armenian troops.
Video frame showing attacks on Armenian positions
Baku called the conditions for peace the complete withdrawal of the Armenian Armed Forces from Karabakh, as well as the dissolution of the unrecognized authorities in Stepanakert. They promise to take administrative, social, educational, medical, religious and other facilities under protection. Women, children, the elderly, disabled and sick will be provided with the necessary assistance, including medical care. They will provide the civilian population with drinking water and food. For evacuation from the danger zone, humanitarian corridors and reception centers have been created on the Lachin road and in other places, the Azerbaijani Ministry of Defense reported.
Yerevan claims that the Azerbaijani army is hitting civilian targets and is conducting massive shelling of cities and villages. Videos of local residents appeared on social networks — cannonade and distant explosions can be heard. The Armenian Foreign Ministry considers what is happening to be a large-scale aggression and asks the UN Security Council, as well as Russian peacekeepers, to take measures for a ceasefire. At an urgently convened Security Council, Pashinyan said that Azerbaijan had violated the contact line and was trying to take control of populated areas. At the same time, the Armenian Ministry of Defense noted the “relatively calm” situation on the borders of the republic.
Bridge and checkpoint on the road to Nagorno-Karabakh
The Russian Foreign Ministry called on the authorities of Armenia and Azerbaijan to stop hostilities and return to a diplomatic settlement of the conflict. Also, department representative Maria Zakharova denied Baku’s claims that Moscow was warned in advance about the “anti-terrorist operation.” The Russian contingent received notification a few minutes before the start of hostilities.
Residents of Yerevan gathered near the government building, blocking all passages to Republic Square. They demand that the authorities take action. “Nikol is a traitor,” the protesters chant. The Prime Minister himself said that Armenia should not take drastic and adventurous steps.
The tension is rising. Plastic bottles were thrown at the security forces. “It’s becoming alarming. It’s not just part of those gathered who are expressing dissatisfaction, but almost everyone. Screams and noise can be heard a kilometer away. There are calls to storm the government building,” one of the participants in the action told the agency.
Increasing the situation At the end of May, the problem of the territorial affiliation of Nagorno-Karabakh Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijani leader Ilham Aliyev, through the mediation of Vladimir Putin, discussed in the Kremlin.
The leader of Armenia said that Yerevan is ready to recognize 86.6 thousand square kilometers of Azerbaijan, including the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh. Aliyev noted that a peace treaty will be signed in the near future if the Armenian side does not change its position.
Trilateral meeting of the presidents of Russia, Azerbaijan and Armenia
In July, Aliyev assured the Armenian population in Karabakh that their rights and security were guaranteed by the constitution. In August, he confirmed that by becoming part of Azerbaijani society, people will receive all cultural, religious and municipal rights.
However, Yerevan insisted: Baku continues to violate the trilateral statement of the leaders of Armenia, Russia and Azerbaijan after the escalation of the conflict in 2020. They were accused of blocking the Lachin corridor, which led to a humanitarian disaster in Karabakh.
Between two fires There are Russian peacekeepers in the region — engaged in mine clearance, prisoner exchange, incident resolution, and humanitarian assistance. In August, Pashinyan told the Italian newspaper La Repubblica that the peacekeepers were not fulfilling their assigned mission, and Moscow was allegedly leaving Nagorno-Karabakh. The Russian Foreign Ministry considered this completely unacceptable and not conducive to solving the problem.
Russian peacekeepers at a checkpoint in the Lachin corridor in Nagorno-Karabakh
View of houses and a highway in the city of Lachin 
At the same time, the Azerbaijani Ministry of Defense believes that The Armed Forces of Armenia are present in Karabakh, and this violates the documents signed three years ago, threatening peace and stability. “There is a strengthening of combat positions with personnel, armored vehicles, artillery installations and other fire weapons,” the press service of the military department says. Yerevan denies this.
According to Peskov, the Russian military is trying to return the process in Nagorno-Karabakh to a political and diplomatic channel and is in contact with both sides. “First of all, of course, our military is now working to return the settlement process to the political and diplomatic channel, for this the only substantive basis is the trilateral documents of two and three years ago,” he said.
The main thing now — to convince Yerevan and Baku to abandon forceful methods and sit down at the negotiating table, the Kremlin speaker emphasized. He also confirmed that Azerbaijan did not warn Moscow in advance about the start of the operation in Karabakh. At the same time, he noted that the Azerbaijani military must take all necessary measures to ensure the safety of the civilian Armenian population.
The unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic was created in 1991. The population is about 150 thousand people, 99 percent are ethnic Armenians. More than a third live in the capital and largest city of the region, Stepanakert.