Azeris and ethnic Armenians fight as Russia, U.S. and France seek ceasefire

YEREVAN/BAKU/GENEVA, October 9 ------ Azerbaijan and ethnic Armenians fought with artillery and heavy guns on Thursday as the United States, France and Russia stepped up efforts to secure a ceasefire and avert a wider war in the South Caucasus. The Kremlin said late on Thursday the foreign ministers of Azerbaijan and Armenia had been invited to take part in talks in Moscow on Friday, adding that the invitation followed calls with the two countries’ leaders.

“Following a series of telephone discussions with the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and the Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan, the President of Russia calls for a halt to military actions in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict,” the Kremlin said in a statement. Russia’s foreign ministry said earlier on Thursday that it was in talks with Azerbaijan and Armenia to organize a possible meeting in Moscow. There was no immediate reaction from Azerbaijan and Yerevan and officials in both countries were not available for comment.

The announcement marks the first result in international efforts to try to halt fighting which has killed at least 400 people since it broke out on Sept. 27. Azerbaijan said the city of Ganja had come under fire, deep inside its territory. Ethnic Armenians who control the mountain enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh inside Azerbaijan said Stepanakert, its main city, and Shusha had been shelled by Azeri forces. In a sign of growing alarm in the region, the head of a six-country military alliance led by Russia and including Armenia warned that the group could intervene if Armenian sovereignty were threatened.

The continued fighting and rising tension underlined the difficulties facing U.S., Russian and French officials meeting in Geneva to try to halt fighting. Azeri Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov was due to attend Thursday’s talks in Geneva, but no direct meetings have been scheduled between Armenia and Azerbaijan. No information was available about results of his meeting with foreign diplomats. Armenian Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan is expected to hold separate talks with U.S., French and Russian officials in Moscow on Monday.

Washington, Paris and Moscow are co-chairs of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe’s Minsk Group that has led mediation over Nagorno-Karabakh since 1992. “The position of the United States has been clear and has not changed: Both sides must cease hostilities immediately and work with the Minsk Group Co-Chairs to return to substantive negotiations as soon as possible,” a U.S. spokesman said.

Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin spoke by phone with his Azeri counterpart, Ali Asadov, on Thursday to underline the importance of restarting peace talks and establishing a ceasefire, Russian news agencies reported, citing the government.

Source: reuters.com