Despite earlier claims of a ceasefire, fighting between Azerbaijan and Armenia continued Wednesday, a day after nearly 100 soldiers died in clashes, according to the Azerbaijani and Armenian ministries of defense.
Russia suggested it had brokered a ceasefire between Armenia and Azerbaijan in a statement Tuesday, but it proved short-lived.
The Russian-mediated ceasefire was "almost immediately broken," according to US National Security Council coordinator for strategic communications John Kirby.
Armenia's Ministry of Defense on Wednesday accused Azerbaijan of attacking again, claiming artillery, mortar and "large-caliber firearms" had been fired at three Armenian towns, including Jermuk near the border between the two countries.
In a series of tweets, the ministry insisted that "the entire responsibility" for the current clashes and any future developments falls on Azerbaijan. Armenia's government said Tuesday that at least 49 Armenian service members had been killed in action.
Azerbaijan, meanwhile, tweeted Wednesday that some of its military units were also being subjected to artillery fire. In a statement, its Ministry of Defense said a criminal case had been opened into the case of two civilians injured as a result of the ongoing conflict with Armenia.
"Two civilians were wounded as a result of a large-scale provocation committed on the night of September 12 by the Armenian armed forces," the statement read. "The facts are currently being investigated."
Fifty Azerbaijani servicemen were killed in deadly clashes on Tuesday, the Azerbaijani Ministry of Defense said in a statement. They included 42 members of the Azerbaijan Army and eight members of the State Border Service, it said.
