President: 18 Armenian soldiers killed, 35 wounded in Azeri clashes (video)

April 2, 2016 - 20:48 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net - As many as 18 Karabakh servicemen were killed and 35 were wounded in the course of military operations with Azerbaijani army on April 1-2, Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan said at a Security Council meeting.

During the session, the Armenian leader stressed that Azerbaijan has suffered major equipment and human losses. According to Sargsyan, it's time to "take a step forward."

"I believe the Foreign Ministry should work with colleagues from Karabakh to prepare an agreement on mutual military assistance," he said. "The Republic of Armenia is fully committed to ensuring the security of the Nagorno Karabakh residents; we have the legal basis for this, having served as one of the parties to the 1994 ceasefire agreement."

On the night of April 1-2, Azerbaijani armed forces initiated overt offensive operations in the southern, southeastern and northeastern directions of the line of contact with Nagorno Karabakh, using artillery, armored fighting vehicles and air force equipment among other weapons.

Aside from the battles on the frontline, the rival has also carried out artillery strikes on civilian settlements and places of permanent deployment of several military units.

On April 2, at around 8:30 am, the rival used BM-21 Grad multiple rocket launcher in the Martuni direction of the contact line. 12-year-old Vaghinak Grigoryan was killed in the shelling, two more children were wounded.

Earleir, the Nagorno Karabakh special forces identified an Azerbaijani subversive group near the Levonarkh settlement and threw the saboteurs back to their positions.

According to Armenia’s Defense Ministry, the rival troops retreated after suffering several human losses.

Azerbaijani army suffered over 200 losses Apr 1-2: Karabakh (video)

The conflict between Nagorno Karabakh and Azerbaijan

The conflict between Nagorno Karabakh and Azerbaijan broke out as result of the ethnic cleansing launched by the Azeri authorities in the final years of the Soviet Union. The Karabakh War was fought from 1991 (when the Nagorno Karabakh Republic was proclaimed) to 1994 (when a ceasefire was sealed by Armenia, NKR and Azerbaijan). Most of Nagorno Karabakh and a security zone consisting of 7 regions are now under control of NKR defense army. Armenia and Azerbaijan are holding peace talks mediated by the OSCE Minsk Group up till now.