Azerbaijan conducts retaliation operation on the border with Armenia

Units of the State Border Service of Azerbaijan conducted a military operation on the border with Armenia, calling it a “retaliation operation.” A post of the Armenian Armed Forces was attacked near the settlement of Nerkin Khanda in the Syunik region.

As a result of the operation, the combat post of the Armenian Armed Forces, where Azerbaijani soldiers were fired upon on February 12, was completely destroyed.

It was also said that the personnel of the combat post suffered serious losses. 

"We will henceforth take more serious and decisive measures to every provocation that the Armenian side makes to aggravate the operational situation on the conditional state border between Azerbaijan and Armenia," the State Border Service of Azerbaijan said. 

It is only the military and political leadership of Armenia that carries responsibility for the attack, the Azerbaijani border service added. 

The Azerbaijani Armed Forces ceased fire in the direction of Armenian positions at 9:30 (8:30 Moscow time). The Armenian Ministry of Defence later said that four people were killed and another one was injured as a result of the attack. 

According to Caliber.Az, an Armenian sniper wounded an Azerbaijani serviceman in the Zangilan direction on February 12. He was evacuated by helicopter.

The same day, units of the Armenian Armed Forces fired small arms at the positions of the Azerbaijani army in the direction of the settlement of Kokhanabi in the Tovuz region.

Armenian and Azerbaiani officials subsequently accused each other of attacks on the border. 

On January 28, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said that Yerevan invited Baku to sign a non-aggression pact. The document would be required should the signing a peace treaty takes a lot of time.