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Armenia says soldier killed by Azerbaijani sniper at border
The Associated PressPublished: January 22, 2007
International Herald Tribune, France
Jan 22 2007
YEREVAN, Armenia: The Armenian Defense Ministry said one of its
soldiers was shot and killed Monday by an Azerbaijan sniper at the
countries' border, but Azerbaijan denied it.
The Armenian soldier was serving near the village of Berd, about 210
kilometers (130 miles) northeast of the capital Yerevan, when he was
shot in the head, a Defense Ministry statement said. He died en route
to a hospital, it said.
Azerbaijani military spokesman Ramiz Melikov said Azerbaijani forces
had not violated a 1994 cease-fire, unlike, he said, Armenia.
"Having occupied our lands, they have begun an undeclared war against
the Azerbaijani people and are trying to blame us," Melikov told The
Associated Press.
On Friday, Azerbaijani officials accused Armenian forces of killing
an Azerbaijani soldier near Nagorno-Karabakh - a disputed mountainous
territory inside Azerbaijan that is controlled by Karabakh and Armenian
forces, along with some surrounding areas.
Six years of fighting over Nagorno-Karabakh ended in a shaky cease-fire
in 1994, with 30,000 people killed and about 1 million driven from
their homes.
Gunfire breaks out regularly along the border between the two ex-Soviet
countries and in the regions near Nagorno-Karabakh.
Repeated efforts by international mediators, including the Organization
for Security and Cooperation in Europe,to resolve the territory's
status have failed, and the lack of resolution has tied up development
in the strategic and energy-rich South Caucasus region.
In Baku, Azerbaijan, before a meeting between the country's foreign
minister and an OSCE envoy, President Ilham Aliev again accused
Armenia of dragging out negotiations over Nagorno-Karabakh.
"Azerbaijan's territorial integrity was not, is not and will never
be a subject for discussions," he said in televised comments.
"Azerbaijan is trying to decide this problem on the basis of the
norms of international law."
The Associated PressPublished: January 22, 2007
International Herald Tribune, France
Jan 22 2007
YEREVAN, Armenia: The Armenian Defense Ministry said one of its
soldiers was shot and killed Monday by an Azerbaijan sniper at the
countries' border, but Azerbaijan denied it.
The Armenian soldier was serving near the village of Berd, about 210
kilometers (130 miles) northeast of the capital Yerevan, when he was
shot in the head, a Defense Ministry statement said. He died en route
to a hospital, it said.
Azerbaijani military spokesman Ramiz Melikov said Azerbaijani forces
had not violated a 1994 cease-fire, unlike, he said, Armenia.
"Having occupied our lands, they have begun an undeclared war against
the Azerbaijani people and are trying to blame us," Melikov told The
Associated Press.
On Friday, Azerbaijani officials accused Armenian forces of killing
an Azerbaijani soldier near Nagorno-Karabakh - a disputed mountainous
territory inside Azerbaijan that is controlled by Karabakh and Armenian
forces, along with some surrounding areas.
Six years of fighting over Nagorno-Karabakh ended in a shaky cease-fire
in 1994, with 30,000 people killed and about 1 million driven from
their homes.
Gunfire breaks out regularly along the border between the two ex-Soviet
countries and in the regions near Nagorno-Karabakh.
Repeated efforts by international mediators, including the Organization
for Security and Cooperation in Europe,to resolve the territory's
status have failed, and the lack of resolution has tied up development
in the strategic and energy-rich South Caucasus region.
In Baku, Azerbaijan, before a meeting between the country's foreign
minister and an OSCE envoy, President Ilham Aliev again accused
Armenia of dragging out negotiations over Nagorno-Karabakh.
"Azerbaijan's territorial integrity was not, is not and will never
be a subject for discussions," he said in televised comments.
"Azerbaijan is trying to decide this problem on the basis of the
norms of international law."