Defense Ministry: Discussion of positional changes in Karabakh “inappropriate”

A Defense Ministry spokesman considers it inappropriate to discuss “positional changes” at the line of contact in Nagorno Karabakh.

Speaking to students of the American University of Armenia on Friday, Artsrun Hovhannisyan said that the matter does not concern secrecy of information. “One cannot have detailed discussions of such matters when military operations still continue,” he explained, as quoted by Novosti-Armenia (newsarmenia.am).

Earlier, hard-line opposition groups in Armenia accused the country’s military and political leadership of hiding true information on territorial losses in Karabakh during last month’s four-day hostilities with Azerbaijan.

Jirair Sefilian, a 1992-1994 war veteran and current leader of a radical opposition movement, claimed earlier this week that Armenians lost “7 million square meters” (7 square kilometers) at the northeastern section of the line of contact near Talish.

A video released by a Sefilian-led group embracing a number of Karabakh war veterans opposed to the current government further claimed that Armenians lost some high ground near Talish, a scene of some of the fiercest battles during the April 2-5 hostilities, which made part of the village exposed to new Azerbaijani positions.

Defense Ministry spokesman Hovhannisyan denied, however, that Azeri-controlled positions are “dominating” over Talish.

The situation in Karabakh, meanwhile, remained tense overnight as the Defense Army accused Azerbaijani forces of continuing to violate the terms of the April 5 agreement to cease fire. In particular, Azerbaijani troops reportedly started firing mortars along the entire line of contact on Friday evening. Karabakh’s Defense Ministry said one Armenian serviceman was heavily wounded as a result of Azerbaijan’s ceasefire violation in the northern direction of the frontline.