Casualties ;Armenian On 12 July, Armenian Ministry of Defence reported that there were no casualties on the Armenian side. On 13 July, Dargahli claimed that Armenian forces suffered "heavy losses" as a result of Azerbaijani artillery attacks conducted in the early morning. At 21:00, Azerbaijani Ministry of Defence reported that "firing positions, radar station of the intelligence unit, storage for military vehicles, tanks, armored personnel carriers, more than 20 [military] personnel, battalion headquarters, and military infrastructure units" of the Armenian Armed Forces were 'completely destroyed', On 14 July, at around 13:20 Deputy Minister of Defense, Lieutenant General Karim Valiyev reported that "about 100 troops, a large number of military and transport equipment, and important facilities" of the Armenian Armed Forces have been destroyed. On 16 July, Azerbaijani Ministry of Defence reported that an Armenian "
X-55" UAV was "immediately detected and destroyed". Hovhannisyan then reported that Aramayis Hovakimyan, a resident of Chinari, was "injured after the strike of the combat UAV of the Azerbaijani side". ;Azerbaijani On 12 July, Azerbaijani Ministry of Defence initially reported that 2 Azerbaijani soldiers were killed, while 5 were wounded in the clashes. Hovhannisyan stated that the "enemy did not suffer only human losses. They also lost a precious
bird", but Azerbaijan Ministry of Defence denied these claims. On 13 July, Dargahli said that the number of Azerbaijani casualties had risen, with an additional soldier dying. Then, Armenian MP Andranik Kocharyan stated that the Armenian Armed Forces have shot down "several drones of the Azerbaijani side, one of which is a
kamikaze drone". On 14 July, Azerbaijani media reported that 76 year old Aziz Azizov, a civilian residing in Ağdam, died as a result of Armenian artillery fire, which was confirmed by Prosecutor General's Office of the Republic of Azerbaijan the next that. Five more soldiers were confirmed
KIA afterwards. At 18:45, Stepanyan shared a video, where Armenian forces allegedly shot down an Azerbaijani "
Elbit Hermes 900" UAV. Azerbaijani side denied losing any of its drones. Hovhanisyan then stated that there was "no clear and conclusive information about the human losses suffered" by the Azerbaijani side, but noted the 11 confirmed KIAs. Stepanyan reported that the "defense units of the Armenian Armed Forces have shot down 13 UAVs" of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces, "10 of which were for combat, and 3 were reconnaissance". On 16 July, Stepanyan wrote that "after a fierce battle", the Azerbaijani forces were "thwarted back, suffering losses". but Dargahli denied this claim. At 17:35, Azerbaijani Ministry of Defence confirmed that Private Nazim Afgan oglu Ismaliyov was KIA.
Hayk Chobanyan, Governor of Tavush Province stated that "the army is in full control of the situation, there is no need to worry and panic".
Nikol Pashinyan,
Prime Minister of Armenia shared a video posted by his wife
Anna Hakobyan a few days ago, where a girl dances to the song "
Our Name is the Armenian Army" in the yard of a private house. On 13 July, the
Armenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement regarding "unconditional support" stated by the Turkish Foreign Ministry, condemning "Turkey's attempts to instigate instability" in the region. Armenian MP
Tigran Karapetyan said that the "military-political leadership of Azerbaijan did not learn from the slap in the face received yesterday, 12 July. Well, the choice is theirs, the answer will be very painful" and that the "leadership of the Republic of Armenia will not hesitate for a second, nor will it hesitate for a second to give an order to destroy any target when it comes to the sovereignty of the Republic of Armenia and Artsakh. This adventure will have irreversible consequences for Azerbaijan". Naghdalyan wrote on her Facebook page that Armenia strongly condemns Azerbaijan's "ongoing attempts to maintain tensions in the northeastern part of the Armenian–Azerbaijani border", and the "criminal targeting of the population of Chinari, Aygepar villages of Tavush Province, which is a clear violation of international humanitarian law". She also noted that Azerbaijan must "unconditionally stop such actions, take the necessary steps to prevent further tensions, for which it bears full responsibility". At around 22:52, Hovhannisyan wrote on his Facebook page: "I really like the
D-30.
Ağdam and D-30 are for each other. Both
Ağdams". On 14 July, Armenia's permanent and plenipotentiary representative to
CSTO Permanent Council Viktor Biyagov presented the situation on the Azerbaijani–Armenian border, saying Armenia calls its "allies to demonstrate solidarity and support in line with the nature of the CSTO Charter". On 15 July,
Armenian President Armen Sarkissian stated that Azerbaijan has a "complete lack of responsibility and humanity" to "impose military actions" in the "days of the general spread of the
coronavirus". He also noted that "if Azerbaijan prefers the language of force, then the Armenian Army is ready to give a worthy response to save the lives of its citizens". On 16 July, Armenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement, accusing Azerbaijan of "criminally targeting the civilian infrastructure", and noting that the "aggressive action took place in a treacherous violation of the earlier ceasefire agreement". At noon, Stepanyan stated that if the Azerbaijani Armed Forces "stop the fire and favorable conditions are created, the Armenian side is ready to permit the recovery and retrieval of the Azerbaijani killed and injured from the battlefield". Then, the
Armenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement, saying that the actions threatened by the Ministry of Defense of Azerbaijan are "a flagrant violation of the International Humanitarian Law in general and the First Additional Protocol to Geneva Conventions in particular", and "an explicit demonstration of
state terrorism and
genocidal intent of Azerbaijan". On 17 July at a meeting of the
Eurasian Economic Union Intergovernmental Council in
Minsk, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated that the "aggression of Azerbaijan took place at a time when the economy and health care of all countries of the World are experiencing stress". The Prime Minister noted that Azerbaijan's "aggressive policy is directed nowhere", and that a "prerequisite for a successful fight against the pandemic is the preservation of peace and the absence of armed conflicts". Pashinyan said that Azerbaijan has taken "military action on the north-eastern border of Armenia. The Armenian Armed Forces did not fail to respond to provocative actions. Unfortunately, they continue to this day, contributing to tensions. Azerbaijan's aggressive policy, escalating leads nowhere. It will not be able to break our resolve and make unreasonable and unilateral concessions". He also noted that there is "no military solution to the conflict and there is no alternative to peace negotiations". On 18 July, the press secretary of the Armenian Foreign Ministry categorically denied all allegations of "Armenia wanting to lure the CSTO into the conflict", noting that Armenia do not need help. According to her, "Armenia, as a member state of the CSTO, considered itself obliged to notify its colleagues and structural partners about what is happening on the border". On 19 July, Armenian Foreign Minister
Zohrab Mnatsakanyan, in an interview with
Sky News Arabia, calling the skirmishes a "renewed attempt by Azerbaijan by way of attacking Armenia on 12 July to once again attempt to impose unilateral concessions from Armenia on the question of Nagorno-Karabakh", and that the "ongoing rhetoric, the very aggressive, inflammatory, warmongering rhetoric of Azerbaijani leadership addressed to Armenia, and the Armenian people in general, the territorial, historical claims to Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh, the use of force, the threat of force, have been the clear underlying reason" of the skirmishes. On 30 July, Armenia's Permanent Representative to the United Nations sent a letter to
U.N. Secretary-General condemning "the instigation of inter-ethnic clashes and violence against the Armenian communities in various parts of the world". He noted that the "violent attacks perpetrated against ethnic Armenians in different parts of the world, involving the deliberate damage and destruction of property belonging to Armenians, including the vandalization of a school and other disruptive acts of ethnically motivated violence and aggression" were carried out with the "direct participation of Azerbaijani officials", and "the hateful and racist rhetoric dominating the political discourse of the Azerbaijani leadership constitutes all elements of incitement to violence and represents a significant indicator of risk of atrocity crimes". ;Azerbaijani
Ilham Aliyev during an online meeting with the Azerbaijan Security Council on 13 July On 12 July, Head of the Foreign Policy Department of the
Presidential Administration of Azerbaijan Hikmat Hajiyev accused the Armenian government of "aggravating the situation and diverting attention from domestic problems against the background of socio-economic problems exacerbated by the spread of
COVID-19 in Armenia as a result of incomplete policy". Azerbaijani Ministry of Defence reported that no loss of territory occurred from the Azerbaijani side during the clashes. On 13 July
President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev attended an
online meeting with the Azerbaijan Security Council. There, he accused Armenia of starting the military confrontation, claimed that "all the responsibility lies with the military-political leadership of Armenia", and noted that military representatives of foreign countries operating in Azerbaijan will be invited to the area to "let them see the situation with their own eyes" as soon as the operational situation allows. Then, said that the "blood of our servicemen and martyrs has not remained and will not remain on the ground. We will use every opportunity to defend ourselves and show the enemy their place again". He also talked about Armenia's "incomprehensible position" in dealing with the
COVID-19 pandemic, saying that "how can it be that at a time when Azerbaijan demands that the whole world unites in this struggle, Armenia has opposed it".
Polad Bülbüloğlu, Azerbaijan's ambassador to Russia said that "Azerbaijan will never accept the loss of 20 percent of its territory".
Ali Ahmedov,
Deputy Prime Minister of Azerbaijan, Deputy Chairman-Executive Secretary of the ruling
New Azerbaijan Party said that the "Azerbaijani army, our knightly soldiers heroically prevented the provocations of the depraved Armenian bandits on the line of contact in the direction of Tovuz, and responded to the enemy with dignity." Azerbaijani MP
Mazahir Afandiyev said that "all provocative attempts of the Armenian side are doomed to failure", while
Chairwoman of the State Committee for Family, Women and Children Affairs of Azerbaijan Republic Hijran Huseynova said that the "Azerbaijani army is ready to prevent any provocation of the enemy". Gudsi Osmanov, Azerbaijan's ambassador to
Moldova said that "against the background of the spread of
COVID-19, the Armenian leadership is trying to divert attention from the socio-economic problems in the country by committing provocations against Azerbaijan with such acts of aggression. With this provocation, the Armenian leadership is trying to solve its domestic policy problems at the expense of the image of a "foreign enemy" by focusing on Azerbaijan". Erkin Gadirli, Azerbaijani MP and co-founder of the
Republican Alternative Party wrote on his Facebook page: "Do not listen to those who try to distract you from the main goal. We all have one enemy – Armenia. Armenians do not divide us into rightist or leftist, rich or poor, liberal or conservative, pro-government or anti-government, religious or atheist, Turk,
Talysh,
Tat,
Lezgin and so on. They see us as the same – enemy". On 14 July,
Commissioner for Human Rights (Ombudsman) of the Republic of Azerbaijan Sabina Aliyeva visited
Ağdam, which was "subjected to the artillery fire from the Armenian Armed Forces". She also visited the house of a resident of the village, 76-year-old Aziz Azizov, who was reportedly as a result of artillery shelling. She said that Armenia, "continuing its aggressive and occupational policy, grossly violated Article 18 of the Geneva Convention", that she condemned this act, and that she will "inform the relevant international structures about it as soon as possible". Hajiyev said that Armenia's "impunity tempts it to further military adventures and provocations. The international community, as well as the co-chairs of the
OSCE Minsk Group, must redouble their efforts. Armenia is trying to create another source of conflict in the region on the border between the two countries" and that this is Armenia's "irresponsible actions to threaten the already sensitive regional peace and security". Leyla Abdullayeva, Chief of the Press Service of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan posted a tweet saying that the Armenian forces targeted "civilians living in the villages of Tovuz district along the state border of Azerbaijan & Armenia" and that the "aggressive & terrorist nature of Armenia is again revealed". On 15 July, President of Azerbaijan
Ilham Aliyev, at the cabinet meeting on results of socio-economic development in first quarter of 2020 and future tasks, said that after committing "dirty acts and receiving a worthy response from the Azerbaijani army, Armenia immediately turned to the
Collective Security Treaty Organization and asked it for help, immediately raised a hue and cry, asking it not to let us strangle them, destroy them", also noting that "Azerbaijan did not violate the state border of Armenia, did not commit provocations and did not invade the territory of Armenia", questioning the relevance of the skirmishes to the CSTO. He then stated that "this step demonstrates their helplessness and cowardice. It shows that they cannot resist Azerbaijan on their own and they know that", saying that Armenia's "appeal to the CSTO is another manifestation of their cowardice". On 16 July, the head of the press service of the Ministry of Defence Vagif Dargahli, as an answer to a local journalist's question about the threat of the ex-Defence Minister of Armenia Ter-Tadevosyan's alleged suggestion of "using Mingachevir reservoir as a target", told that the "relief of the territory where the
Mingachevir reservoir is located, the strengthening work implemented in this building, as well as modern air assault tools at the disposal of our
Air Defense Forces do not allow to hit our strategic object". In addition to that, he stated that the "Armenian side should not forget that the latest missile systems that are in the arsenal of our army make it possible to hit the
Armenian Nuclear Power Plant with high accuracy, which can lead to a great catastrophe for Armenia". Then, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said that "some diplomats have betrayed the state, and are not hiding it", also noting that they "are under the control of the special services of the countries where they live". In addition to that, he said that Azerbaijan has "enough information". On 18 July, Bülbüloğlu stated that "Armenia's actions are a provocation aimed at luring the
CSTO countries, especially
Russia as the main member of the bloc to this conflict, since it did not occur on the line of contact with Nagorno-Karabakh, but on the border of Armenia and Azerbaijan". On 21 July, during a press conference, Hajiyev said that the "provocation committed by Armenia on July 12 in the direction of Azerbaijan's Tovuz in the Azerbaijani-Armenian border was pre-planned", was "aimed at diverting attention from the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, aggravating the situation on the border and endangering the region, involving third parties in the conflict, damaging the international success of Azerbaijan, the East-West Transport Corridor, bringing the region face to face with new environmental threats". In addition to that, he stated that Azerbaijan is not "going to participate in the imitated negotiations on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict", and that "mandate envisions holding negotiations, guided by international principles, the Helsinki Final Act and UN Security Council resolutions". Then, he added that "in contrast to Armenia, Azerbaijan has never planned attacks on civilian targets. The Armenian side is deliberately trying to politicize the problem by spreading such misinformation. The Azerbaijani side has never voiced the idea of attacking civilian targets. The Armenian side, however, has repeatedly made threatening statements about striking the Mingachevir water reservoir, oil and gas pipelines and cities of Azerbaijan". In addition to that, he said that the "Armenian military and political leadership creates bogus companies, and weapons purchased at low prices are then sold to third parties", noting that "there is strong evidence that these weapons fall into the hands of terrorists", calling on the "countries cooperating with Armenia to be more careful". On 22 July, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, during a phone call with United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, expressed his "gratitude to the UN Secretary-General for his phone call and personal attention to the events at the border". Aliyev said that the "Armenian side had fired not only on Azerbaijani military but also targeted Azerbaijani villages, killing a 76-year-old civilian along with the Azerbaijani servicemen".
Detention of Rahim Gaziyev On 13 July,
Azerbaijani State Security Service and
Prosecutor General's Office of the Republic of Azerbaijan issued a statement, accusing former Azerbaijani Defense Minister
Rahim Gaziyev of deliberately spreading "untrue information about the nature of the events on social network platforms", acting "to weaken the defense capabilities of the Republic of Azerbaijan", and inciting "riots and violent seizure of state power". Gaziyev was detained as a suspect in a criminal case under Articles 281 (public incitement against the state) and 282 (provocation) of the
Criminal Code of the Republic of Azerbaijan. Gaziyev's daughter Sevinj Jamilova said that "these criminal codes have nothing to do with my father".
Dismissal of Elmar Mammadyarov On 16 July, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev conducted an
online meeting of the Cabinet of Ministers. There, he criticized the
Foreign Ministry, being unable to find the Foreign Minister
Elmar Mammadyarov. Stating that while "the
Prime Minister is at work, I am at work until the morning, the
Minister of Defense, the Chief of
General Staff, as well as the Chief of the
State Security Service, the
Minister of Internal Affairs, the Chief of the
Foreign Intelligence Service, and the Secretary of the Security Council are at work until the early hours of the morning", Aliyev asked about Foreign Minister's whereabouts. Prime Minister
Ali Asadov replied that Mammadyarov was "working from home". Mammadyarov was dismissed from his position a few hours later.
Jeyhun Bayramov was swiftly appointed as a new Foreign Minister.
Georgia and Serbia's involvement On 19 July, Haqqin.az, a news website tied to the Azerbaijani security services, reported that several days before the attack and during the height of hostilities, a large batch of mortar ammunition of various calibers was delivered from
Serbia, which acquired a license to export armaments to Armenia in 2019, through
Georgia to Armenia. The next day, Danica Veinović, chargé d'Affaires of Serbia in Azerbaijan, was summoned by Azerbaijan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and met with Deputy Foreign Minister Khalaf Khalafov. Khalafov said that "according to reliable and confirmed information, a large amount of ammunition was sent from Serbia to Armenia, including mortars and ammunition of various calibers". In response, Veinović said that she had no information about the mentioned issues, promised to deliver the information to the Serbian side.
Salome Samadashvili, a leader of the Georgia's opposition party
United National Movement said that Georgia knows that "Russia’s policy of destabilizing the region is partly based on supplying arms to both Armenia and Azerbaijan", and that Georgia has "an international obligation not to transport military cargo through Georgia to any of the parties to the conflict", calling on the "Foreign Ministry to lend clarity to this issue immediately".
Gia Volski, the deputy speaker of the
Georgian Parliament and a senior member of the ruling
Georgian Dream party, dismissed the report as nothing but gossip, saying that "there are several media outlets – both in Azerbaijan and Georgia – that unfortunately picked up this rumor". The
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia then issued a statement, calling the claims of the transportation of military ammunition to Armenia from Serbia through the territory of Georgia "disinformative", and noting that it is "aimed at artificially creating problems on relations between the two strategic partners". On 21 July,
Rasim Ljajić,
Serbian Minister of Trade,
Deputy Prime Minister confirmed weapon exportation to Armenia. According to him, weapons, for which the approval of four Serbian ministries was obtained, were exported by a private company in May and June. Ljajić said that everything was legal since there had not been sanctions implemented by international organizations against Armenia. Deputy Foreign Minister noted that the Ministry is awaiting official comments by Serbia regarding the final remarks of Azerbaijan. On 31 July, the
President of Serbia,
Aleksandar Vučić, answered a question about weapon sales to Armenia. He said that both Armenia and Azerbaijan are friendly countries for Serbia, and weapons produced by Serbia are sold to both. He noted, that "over the past few years, we have sold ten times more weapons to Azerbaijan".
Jordan's involvement On 24 July, Haqqin.az, yet again published a report, this time accusing the
Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan of "exporting weapons to Armenia". The next day, Azerbaijani MP Fazil Mustafa wrote on his
Facebook page that if the "investigation by haqqin.az is confirmed true", he "will resign from the Azerbaijan-Jordan inter-parliamentary working group". He added that as a "devout
Muslim", he considers someone who "arms an enemy who is killing Muslims more dangerous than the Armenians". On 27 July, the Ambassador of Jordan to Azerbaijan was summoned to the Azerbaijani Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Deputy Foreign Minister of Azerbaijan
Araz Azimov and the Jordanian Ambassador Sami Abdullah Ghosheh held a meeting. Azimov said that the "reports on Jordan's arms sales to Armenia caused dissatisfaction in the public when Armenia's recent military provocation on the international border of the two countries has demonstrated its aggressive intentions".
Israel's involvement Armenian officials and media outlets reported that during the clashes Armenia had successfully downed Israeli-made drones operated by Azerbaijan. On 29 July, Armenian minister of foreign affairs Zohrab Mnatsakanyan told
The Jerusalem Post, "Arms trade to Azerbaijan is fatal, because Azerbaijan never hesitates to use those weapons against civilian infrastructure, the civilian population". He further said, "
Israel needs to halt all weapon sales to Azerbaijan"; he promised that the Ministry would "consistently pursue this issue". In 2016, Azerbaijani president Aliyev revealed that his country had signed $5 billion worth of long-term contracts with Israel to buy weapons and security equipment.
Azerbaijani–Turkish military exercises Armenian authorities accused Turkey for "resorting to unprecedented threats against Armenia and unilateral support to Azerbaijan" during the clashes. According to the Armenian Foreign Ministry, the holding of joint Turkey-Azerbaijan large-scale
military exercises "further aggravates the situation". On 29 July, the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Armenia to the
OSCE circulated a
note verbale informing that the Republic of Armenia will suspend military inspections and guest inspectors from Turkey under the
CFE treaty and the
Vienna Document on the territory of the Republic of Armenia. On 31 July, during a telephone call to Erdogan President Ilham Aliyev highly appreciated the "strong support of the President of Turkey in connection with the recent events on the Azerbaijani-Armenian border". In an interview to
RFE/RL, Armenian Security Council Secretary
Armen Grigoryan said that the reason for Turkey's recent support to Azerbaijan is the "serious failures of the Ilham Aliyev's administration" during the Tavush clashes.
Vandalism in KZV Armenian School On 24 July,
KZV Armenian School and its adjacent Armenian Community Center in
San Francisco were vandalized with racist anti-Armenian graffiti. The messages contained curse words and appeared to be connected to increased tensions between Azerbaijan and Armenia. The
US House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi noted that the "KZV Armenian School is a part of the beautiful fabric of our San Francisco family. The hateful defacing of this place of community and learning is a disgrace".
San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin,
San Francisco Mayor London Breed and
lieutenant governor of California Eleni Kounalakis also condemned the act.
California Governor Gavin Newsom wrote that "these acts of hatred have no place in California".
California State Senator Anthony Portantino called "on Azerbaijan to stop the unprovoked violence on the Armenian border and end this assault on American institutions where we send our children”.
Military awards Four Armenian servicemen who were killed on 14 July were posthumously awarded with the decrees of the
Armenian President Armen Sarkissian. By a Presidential decree, the commanders of
1st and
5th Army Corps, Colonel Zhirayr Poghosyan and Colonel Andranik Piloyan, who took part in the skirmishes, were awarded the rank of
Major General. On 25 July, by the decree of the President of Armenia, a private of the Armed Forces of Armenia Artur Muradyan was posthumously awarded the medal "For Combat Service". On 14 August, the Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan has signed a petition asking President Armen Sarkissian to award a group of participants of the clashes with the first and second class Order of
The Combat Cross, as well as to honor captain
Ruben Sanamyan with the title of
National Hero of Armenia. On 18 August, by the President Sarkissian's decree, Ruben Sanamyan has been awarded the Order of the Homeland and the highest title of National Hero of Armenia for "exceptional courage, selflessness and bravery in ensuring the defense and security of the homeland". 199 more servicemen of Armenia have been awarded state awards. == Reactions ==