ArmInfo. The escalation of tension in Tavush and the deaths of three young people are the result of the Armenian authorities' passivity shown at the Dec 26 summit of the CSTO in St. Petersburg, Director of the Stepanakert-based "Ashkharh" Center for Strategic Studies Hrachya Arzumanyan has told ArmInfo.
To note, on December 29 morning, the Azeri armed forces attempted a sabotage attack on the southeastern section of the Azeri-Armenian border near Chinari village of Tavush province of Armenia. The adversary used sniper rifles and grenade launchers.
"I do not think we could expect anything different after the April events. The month of April and the entire year 2016 gave the Armenian President the right "to be taken ill" - by the way, his Belarusian counterpart also took advantage of that right. But Serzh Sargsyan left for St. Petersburg. Eventually we have witnessed one more escalation on the border, a sabotage attack and mortar fire. This is normal and natural," he says.
Arzumanyan thinks that Yerevan's response to the challenges and threats to the Armenian statehood, particularly, to the willingness to cede the sovereignty is unnatural. At the same time, the analyst thinks cession of sovereignty is an unfeasible task for both the Armenian authorities and force centers.
Armenian Defense Ministry Spokesman Artsrun Hovhannisyan said that three Armenian servicemen were killed - Senior Lieutenant Shavarsh Melikyan and privates Edgar Narayan and Erik Abovyan. When retreating, the adversary left one victim on the Armenian side. There is no more detailed information about Azeri losses. "The entire responsibility for the provocation lies on the Azeri leadership," the Armenian Defense Ministry says.
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