Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov.21
By Ilkin Izzet - Trend:
Both the OSCE Minsk Group and the US State Department expressed their attitude to the fact that a helicopter of the Armenian armed forces was downed in the airspace over Nagorno-Karabakh.
We regret the situation that caused the destruction of the helicopter, the Charge d'Affaires in Azerbaijan Derek Hogan told reporters Nov.20.
US urges the parties to resolve the conflict peacefully, he said.
"During the meetings of the Presidents of Azerbaijan and Armenia in Sochi, Wales and Paris, some progress has been achieved in this direction," said Hogan. "We urge the parties to the peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict."
On Nov. 12, at 13:45 (UTC/GMT +4 hours) a Mi-24 helicopter flying 1,700 meters northeast of the Kengerli village of Aghdam district attacked the positions of the Azerbaijani army. The Azerbaijani side shot down one helicopter. The debris of the downed helicopter fell on an area, located 500 meters away from the frontline.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan.
As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.
The two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the US are currently holding peace negotiations.
Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions.