Putin Urges Karabakh Conflict Parties to Immediately Cease Fire

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — Russian President Vladimir Putin is deeply concerned about recent reports on the renewal of hostilities along the front lines of the Nagorno-Karabakh region and calls on the sides to immediately cease fire, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Saturday.

"President Putin urges the sides to the conflict to cease fire immediately and show restraint," Peskov told journalists.

On Saturday, Baku and Yerevan traded blame for breaching the truce in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and reported about heavy fighting in the area. The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry reported shelling and dozens of ceasefire violations by the Armenian armed forces, while the Armenian Defense Ministry reported offensive actions from the Azerbaijani side.

Putin has expressed regret that the situation has relapsed into violence, Peskov said, adding that this has occurred despite trilateral settlement efforts by Russia, Armenia and Azerbaijan, as well as mediation efforts by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Minsk Group.

The conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan began in 1988, after the predominantly Armenian Nagorno-Karabakh autonomous region announced its secession from the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic. Nagorno-Karabakh proclaimed its independence in 1991, prompting a war that lasted until a Russia-brokered ceasefire was signed in 1994. In September 2015, the conflict escalated, with the sides blaming each other for violating the truce.