Azernews.Az

By Sara Rajabova

Azerbaijan`s Defense Ministry has warned Armenia that any sabotage against its Mingachevir Hydroelectric Power Plant will prompt a very sharp and adequate response.

Armenian Defense Minister Seyran Ohanyan has recently said that the Armenian armed forces were going to sabotage Mingachevir HPP.

The minister's statement followed the recent tensions on the contact line of the Azerbaijani and Armenian troops.

Armenian armed forces aggravated tensions along the frontline by attacking the Azerbaijani positions. Armenia began to escalate tensions on the border areas on July 31. Sporadic fighting has continued ever since.

"The Azerbaijani Armed Forces are capable of striking any military facility located in the territories occupied by the enemy or in Armenia itself. The people of Armenia should know that such provocations will lead to more severe consequences for them," the ministry said.

The ministry further noted that Azerbaijan's missiles are targeted at Armenia, and the Azerbaijani army is even capable of fulfilling the order to wipe the city of Yerevan off the face of the earth.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

The two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the U.S. are currently holding peace negotiations.

Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. Security Council's four resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions.