October 11, 2016•Update: October 11, 2016
By Ruslan Rehimov
BAKU, Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan will respond to Armenian provocations in a more destructive and staggering way, Azerbaijani Defense Minister Zakir Hasanov warned Tuesday.
According to a statement issued by the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry, Hasanov said Yerevan was yet to learn its lesson from clashes that took place in April.
He said Armenia was yet to take any positive step to resolve the Upper Karabakh conflict despite efforts made by Azerbaijan.
He said negotiations were not progressing because of Armenia's uncompromising manner and violations of international law.
He said Armenian army was continuing its provocations along the frontline, adding the Azerbaijani army was responding to it.
"We are superior in all fields. We are capable of destroying their military structures at desired spots and can destroy their missiles with our thousands of missiles," he said.
"They should have taken lesson from the clashes in April. But it seems that they did not take lesson from our blow. Our response to the enemy's next provocation will be more destructive and staggering," he warned.
Armenian forces violated the cease-fire on Oct. 5 when it killed an Azerbaijani soldier.
Karabakh broke away from Azerbaijan in 1991 with Armenian military support and a peace process has yet to be implemented.
Since the end of war in 1994, Armenia and Azerbaijan have held talks under the supervision of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe’s Minsk Group.
An agreement-in-principle was reached in St. Petersburg, Russia, following talks late June involving Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan.
This April, according to the Azerbaijan Defense Ministry, more than 270 military personnel were killed in the worst breach of a 1994 treaty between the sides.
Three UN Security Council Resolutions (853, 874 and 884), and United Nations General Assembly Resolutions 19/13 and 57/298 refer to Karabakh as being part of Azerbaijan. The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe refers to the region as being occupied by Armenian forces.
