BAKU, Azerbaijan, Oct.16
Trend:
Armenia is an aggressor country and an invader state, the Full Member of the Russian Municipal Academy, President of the Institute for Municipal Development of Russia, Professor Sergey Kirsanov said
Kirsanov made the remark in his letter addressed to the Director of the Institute of Economics of Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences, Doctor of Economics, Professor Nazim Imanov, Trend reports.
In the letter, the scientist wrote that he supports the position of Azerbaijan.
“I express my solidarity to the bombarded civilians and all people of Azerbaijan. I hope that by the efforts of the international community a ceasefire will be reached and the conditions necessary for the resumption of peace talks will be fulfilled," he emphasized.
Armenian Armed Forces launched a large-scale military attack on positions of the Azerbaijani army on the front line, using large-caliber weapons, mortars, and artillery on Sept. 27.
Azerbaijan responded with a counter-offensive along the entire front. As a result of retaliation, Azerbaijani troops liberated a number of territories previously occupied by Armenia, as well as take important, strategic heights under control.
The fighting continued into October 2020, in the early days of which Armenia has launched missile attacks on Azerbaijani cities of Ganja, Mingachevir, Khizi as well as Absheron district.
Following almost two weeks of intensive military confrontations, Armenia and Azerbaijan, with Russia's mediation, have agreed on a temporary ceasefire for humanitarian purposes, for exchange of prisoners of war as well as bodies of the dead.
After the declaration of the ceasefire, on October 11, 2020, at about 2:00 (GMT+4) Armenian Armed Forces fired missiles at multi-apartment residential buildings in the central part of Ganja, the second largest city of Azerbaijan, located outside the frontline zone. As a result, 10 civilians were killed, 35 injured, as well as more than 10 multi-story buildings and over 100 different objects, were damaged.
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, Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.
The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on the withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno Karabakh and the surrounding districts.