BRUSSELS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 14th July, 2020) EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell spoke to Armenian Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan and his Azerbaijani counterpart, Elmar Mammadyarov, after another clash on the border between the two former Soviet nations.
"Underlined need to defuse tensions & to cease fire. Direct communication between the two sides is essential & re-engagement in substantive negotiations under @OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs," Borrell tweeted.
The two rivals blamed each other for this Monday's cross-border shootout, which left four Azerbaijani officers dead and two Armenian police wounded. The standoff happened hundreds of miles away from the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region, which has seen frequent clashes in the past years.
The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry accused Armenia of ordering its armed forces to attack Azerbaijani positions in an effort to divert the public's attention from domestic problems. A spokesman for Armenia's Foreign Ministry argued that Azerbaijani troops had fired artillery into its territory and warned it against "warmongering."
