Two Armenian Sukhoi Su-25 jets claimed to have been downed by Turkish F-16s actually crashed into mountains and were destroyed, Azerbaijani presidential aide Hikmet Hajiyev said Wednesday.
Hajiyev and accused Yerevan of lying about one of its planes being shot down. "This shows the Armenian military leadership is not providing accurate information to its citizens and the public," he said.
The Turkish Defense Ministry on Wednesday strongly denied that Turkish warplanes were being used in the Azerbaijan-Armenia conflict, saying the allegations are "delusive" and "just a black propaganda of Armenia."
The ministry in a written statement said false claims have been made from official Armenian accounts "who cannot provide any evidence that the Turkish aircraft and UAVs were used against Armenia."
It added that these allegations have not been taken seriously by anyone except their own supporters.
"On the other hand, the Azerbaijan Armed Forces in the past few days have shown the whole world that they have the ability and qualifications to achieve victory on their own and the determination and perseverance to liberate the occupied territories," the ministry stated.
Armenia's Ministry of Defense said Tuesday that a Turkish warplane taking off from Azerbaijan's Ganja province shot down a Su-25 warplane over its territory. Armenia posted pictures earlier of the wreckage of a plane it said was the downed plane, naming its pilot as Maj. Valeri Danelin.
The claims were immediately denied by Turkish and Azerbaijani authorities.
Communications Director Fahrettin Altun told Bloomberg late Tuesday that allegations were false.
"The claim that Turkey shot down an Armenian fighter jet is absolutely untrue. Armenia should withdraw from the territories under its occupation instead of resorting to cheap propaganda tricks," Altun also told the press in a statement.
Later in the day, the Azerbaijani Ministry of Defense also denied the allegations. The ministry said in a statement that the allegation is "yet another fantasy of the Armenian military propaganda machine."
The situation in the Caucasus has been tense due to Armenia's indiscriminate attacks on civilians in Azerbaijan, which has left 11 dead and 33 more wounded.
Border clashes broke out early Sunday when Armenian forces targeted Azerbaijani civilian and military positions, leading to several casualties.
Shortly after the violations began, Ankara reiterated its support for Azerbaijan, with officials, mainstream political parties and the Turkish Foreign Ministry declaring unwavering backing for its brotherly Turkic nation.
