STEPANAKERT. – The Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR) Ministry of Defense on Thursday issued a statement.

“Today, the Azerbaijani media (…) disseminated information that, allegedly, the Armenians (…) have considerably raised the level of tension on the frontline, ahead of Nowruz and holidays, and opened fire at [Azerbaijani] border villages and civilians,” the NKR MOD statement specifically reads.

“[But] the NKR Ministry of Defense announces that it is committed to the agreements reached, and it never acts as the aggressor. As for the cases of injuries recorded in the Azerbaijani army on March 19 and 20, the [NKR] DA [i.e. Defense Army] has nothing to do with them. The reasons for this incident should be sought within the Azerbaijani Army.

“It is the Azerbaijani side that resorts to the aggravation of the situation on the contact line, ahead of important state holidays, important meetings. Moreover, by disseminating such misinformation, the opposing party paves the way for its further provocations.”