Karabakh Conflict Escalates as Regional Soldier Shot by Azeri Forces

YEREVAN (Sputnik) — Defense Ministry of the unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic said on Sunday that one of its army servicemen was killed in shelling from the Azerbaijani side.

“The Karabakh Defense Army's serviceman…died as a result of the enemy's violations of the ceasefire in the east (Martuni region)," the ministry’s press service said.

The latest wave of violence in Azerbaijan's breakaway Nagorno-Karabakh region, mostly inhabited by Armenians, intensified on April 2, leading to multiple casualties before Armenia and Azerbaijan reached a shaky ceasefire deal three days later, which has been followed by near-daily reports of truce violations.

The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict began in 1988, when the autonomous region sought to secede from the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic. The region proclaimed independence when the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991. The move triggered a war that lasted until a Russia-brokered ceasefire was signed in 1994.

Azerbaijan insists on maintaining its territorial integrity, while Armenia is defending the interests of the self-proclaimed NKR, which has not been part of the peace talks conducted since 1992.