Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov.22
By Elchin Mehdiyev - Trend:
"Military escalation in Nagorno-Karabakh conflict does not help efforts to recover the remains of the crew members of the Armenian combat helicopter downed by Azerbaijani soldiers," the U.S. Co-Chair of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Minsk Group James Warlick tweeted on Nov.22.
"We urge the parties to take advantage of dialogue and diplomacy in this matter," said Warlick.
On Nov. 12, at 13:45 (UTC/GMT +4 hours) a Mi-24 helicopter flying 1700 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.