Moscow increasingly concerned over developments in Nagorno-Karabakh - Kremlin spokesman

MOSCOW, April 5. /TASS/. Moscow is concerned over developments in Nagorno-Karabakh, and the international community is making active efforts to settle the situation, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Tuesday. Russia has repeatedly expressed its concerns over the situation in the conflict zone, and "recent developments have only caused even more concern," Peskov said. "This concern is shared by absolutely all countries in the region, all countries involved in the Minsk Quintet, so that’s why very energetic efforts are being made now," he added. The Kremlin spokesman noted contacts are maintained at the level of separate agencies and on the international arena. On Saturday, April 2, the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh rapidly deteriorated when the parties to the Karabakh conflict accused each other of violating truce along the front line. The claims came from defense authorities of Armenia and of Azerbaijan. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) said in its humanitarian report released on Sunday, that at least 33 people, including three civilians, were killed in military actions, and over 200 more were injured. "The fighting was most prominent near the villages of Agdere (Martakert), Khojavend (Martouni) and Hadrut (Hadrout), where in total 14,400 people live," the report said. "Around 150,000 people live in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone and are at risk of forced displacement should the hostilities intensify resulting in humanitarian needs," UNOCHA noted. Nagorno-Karabakh conflict Neighboring Armenia and Azerbaijan fell out with each other in the late 1980s because of Nagorno-Karabakh, the disputed territory that had been part of Azerbaijan before the Soviet Union break-up but was mainly populated by Armenians. In 1991-1994, the confrontation spilled over into large-scale military action for control over the enclave and some adjacent territories. Thousands left their homes on both sides in a conflict that killed 30,000. A truce was called between Armenia and the Nagorno-Karabakh republic on one side and Azerbaijan on the other in May 1994. Talks on Nagorno-Karabakh have been held on the basis of the so-called Madrid Principles suggested by co-chairs of the Minsk Group of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) -- Russia, France and the United States -- in December 2007 in the Spanish capital. They include three key principles written in the Helsinki Final Act: refraining from the threat or use of force, territorial integrity and the right to self-determination. Read more