“Their life is not at risk. An investigation is underway to clarify details of the incident,” the Defense Army said in a statement.
The statement denied Azerbaijani media reports saying that Armenian forces resorted to an “armed provocation” in Karabakh’s southern Hadrut district that left one Azerbaijani soldier wounded.
A senior Karabakh official, Davit Babayan, likewise claimed that Azerbaijani forces tried to advance at a southern section of the Karabakh “line of contact” but were repelled.
“These actions are directed at both Karabakh and Russia,” Babayan told the Armenpress news agency. “It is possible that there will be more such provocative actions in the future. But I think the response will be tough, including from [Russian] peacekeepers.”
The peacekeepers did not immediately comment on what was the most serious ceasefire violation reported in the Karabakh conflict zone since a Russian-brokered agreement that stopped the six-week Armenian-Azerbaijani war on November 10.
The nearly 2,000 Russian troops were deployed in and around Karabakh under the terms of that agreement. The Russian Defense Ministry reported earlier on Saturday that the peacekeeping forces have fortified their observation posts with protective and surveillance equipment.