Page 8 - IRANRptNov20

2.3​ ​Armenia and Azerbaijan in state of conflict not far off all-out war
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on October 27 called on the leaders of Azerbaijan and Armenia to abide by a Nagorno-Karabakh conflict ceasefire which the previous day collapsed minutes after it went into effect.
Armenia and Azerbaijan exchanged blame for the collapse of the US-brokered ceasefire as the war, now in its second month, intensified, particularly near the border with Iran. October 27 also saw Iran ​announce​ that Seyed Abbas Araghchi, the Iranian deputy foreign minister for political affairs, would embark on a regional tour of at least four capitals—Baku, Yerevan, Moscow and Ankara and possibly others—in an attempt at helping to resolve the crisis.
In phone calls with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Pompeo "pressed the leaders to abide by their commitments to cease hostilities and pursue a diplomatic solution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict," the US State Department said. He also told the two leaders that "there is no military solution to this conflict," it added.
Fighting was reported along several parts of the front line on October 27. Heavy clashes were said to be taking place in the southern sector near the border with Iran.
Armenia said Azerbaijan was using drones and artillery to strike border guard positions along its internationally recognised border in the southeast near Iran, meaning Armenian forces had little choice but to strike back. Azerbaijan denied the claims and in turn accused Armenian forces of firing mortars at its positions in Zangilan, Khojavend, Fizuli, and Gubadli.
The US, France, and Russia—co-chairs of the Minsk Group of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), a mediation group—said its foreign ministers ​would meet on October 29 i​ n Geneva to discuss Nagorno-Karabakh​.
Eurasianet, meanwhile, ​reported​ that Russia has reportedly set up a small military outpost on the border of Armenia in an apparent attempt to keep Azerbaijan’s offensive from spilling over into Armenian territory by ensuring that a “tripwire” lies in the way.
Iran officially maintains a neutral stance towards the conflict between its two neighbours in which Turkey-backed Azerbaijan is attempting to recover lands occupied by ethnic Armenians. However, relations between Tehran and Baku are complex and analysts often conclude that Iran favours Armenia, and may be allowing substantial flows of Russian weapons to reach the small nation via its territory, despite Tehran's denials. Further complicating the situation is the fact that Iran has a substantial Iranian Azerbaijani population and, perhaps bearing this in mind, several leading Iranian clerics have backed Azerbaijan’s push to liberate its territory.
8​ IRAN Country Report November 2020 www.intellinews.com