DM Monitoring
YEREVAN/BAKU: Azerbaijan accused Armenia on Wednesday of trying to attack its gas and oil pipelines and warned of a “severe” response as tensions rose sharply around a fraying ceasefire in the mountain enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh.
Armenia hit back by saying Azeri forces wanted to seize control of the tiny territory in the South Caucasus, which is governed by ethnic Armenians, and accused Azerbaijan and its ally Turkey of “aggression” despite Saturday’s ceasefire deal.
The angry rhetoric prompted Russia to appeal again for both sides to observe the humanitarian ceasefire in Nagorno-Karabakh, which is internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan. But Moscow and Turkey also exchanged recriminations over the fighting that has killed more than 500 people since Sept. 27.
Fears are growing that the two big regional powers could be sucked into a conflict that is being fought close to Azeri pipelines which carry gas and oil to international markets. “Armenia is trying to attack and take control of our pipelines,” Azeri President Ilham Aliyev said in an interview with Turkish broadcaster Haberturk.
Azerbaijan’s defence ministry said separately that it would destroy all military facilities in Armenia that targeted Azeri civilian locations. The Armenian defence ministry has denied firing on civilian targets, but said it reserved the right to target any military installations and combat movements in Azerbaijan.
