On Azerbaijan-Armenia clash, India asks ‘aggressor side’ to cease hostilities

India on Tuesday called on the “aggressor side” in fresh fighting along the Armenia-Azerbaijan border to “immediately cease hostilities” and said bilateral disputes should be resolved through diplomacy and dialogue.

External affairs ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi referred to attacks along the border between the two countries and said: “We have seen reports of attacks along the Armenia-Azerbaijan border, including targeting of civilian settlements and infrastructure on September 12-13, 2022. We call upon the aggressor side to immediately cease hostilities.”

He added, “We believe that bilateral disputes should be settled through diplomacy and dialogue. There can be no military solution to any conflict. We encourage both sides to pursue talks to arrive at a lasting and peaceful solution.”

Armenia has said at least 49 of its soldiers were killed in fighting along the border with Azerbaijan, and that the attacks were carried out because of a dispute over the Nagorno-Karabakh region.

On the other hand, Azerbaijan said its troops returned fire to prevent “large-scale provocations” by Armenia’s military.

Russia said on Tuesday it brokered a truce between Armenia and Azerbaijan after fighting erupted on the border between the two sides this week. The media in Azerbaijan, however, reported the ceasefire has already been broken.

Moscow called on the two countries to “refrain from further escalation of the situation, exercise restraint and strictly observe the ceasefire in accordance with the trilateral statements of the leaders of Russia, Azerbaijan and Armenia of November 9, 2020, January 11 and November 26, 2021”, according to a statement from Russia’s foreign ministry.

Russia said it acted after receiving an appeal from Armenia’s leadership to “assist in resolving the situation”.

The dispute over Nagorno-Karabakh dates back to the collapse of the Soviet Union in the late 1980s. The region is controlled by ethnic Armenians but is located within Azerbaijan’s territory. The two countries last clashed over the region in 2020.