France, Russia and the US on Monday strongly condemned "the unprecedented and dangerous" escalation of violence between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces over the region of Nagorno-Karabakh. The three powers once again called for an "immediate and unconditional ceasefire". Together, Paris, Moscow and Washington chair the Minsk Group of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) which, since 1992, has aimed to find a peaceful resolution to the conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh. The latest flare-up of violence is one of the worst observed with dozens on both sides already killed in the fighting. Azerbaijan's Foreign Ministry did not disclose military casualties but said that 24 civilians have been killed and 121 have been injured in the nine days of fighting. The state-run Armenian Unified Infocentre has tallied 21 civilian casualties and more than 200 military deaths. In their joint statement, France, Russia and the US said they "condemned in the strongest possible terms the dangerous escalation of violence in and outside the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone". "The (Foreign) Ministers underline without reservation that the recent attacks which allegedly targeted civilian installations, both along the line of contact and in Azerbaijani and Armenian territories outside the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone, and that the disproportionate character of such attacks constitute an unacceptable threat to the stability of the region," the statement added. — Euronews
