Armenian soldiers attempt to provoke Azerbaijani forces on border
A house burns in a village outside the town of Kalbajar, following the signing of a peace agreement to end the military conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the Nagorno-Karabakh region, Nov. 14, 2020. (AFP Photo)


Armenian soldiers opened fire on Azerbaijani and Russian soldiers at the border with Azerbaijan Wednesday night. It was reported that Russian border guards informed their Azerbaijani colleagues that the provocateurs were drunk and requested the incident not be responded to.

In the statement made by the Azerbaijan State Border Service (DSX), it was reported that in the evening of April 21, Armenian soldiers opened fire on the positions of the State Border Service units in the village of Seyidler in the province of Zangilan on the Azerbaijan-Armenia border. The Russian Federal Security Service border guard units were stationed on the Armenian side of the region.

It was stated that the Russian border guards advised their Azerbaijani colleagues that the people who made the provocation were drunk and requested Azerbaijan not retaliate to the incident. "Azerbaijani border guards acted cautiously and did not retaliate, taking into account the call of the Russian side. After the incident, the Azerbaijani side was informed that the Armenian soldiers who made the provocation were removed from the region," the statement continued.

The statement also emphasized that on the same day, a group moving towards the national border in the direction of Shurnuh village of Gubadli province with about 40 vehicles shouted Armenian and anti-Azerbaijan slogans. It has been stated that the DSX will respond in the harshest way if such provocations are repeated in the future.

Azerbaijan and Armenia fought for six weeks over the region of Nagorno-Karabakh last year after new clashes erupted on Sept. 27. The Armenian army launched attacks on civilians and Azerbaijani forces, violating several humanitarian cease-fire agreements.

During the conflict, Azerbaijan liberated several cities and nearly 300 settlements and villages from the Armenian occupation in Nagorno-Karabakh.

The two countries signed a Russian-brokered agreement on Nov. 10 to end the fighting and work toward a comprehensive resolution.