ArmInfo.In my opinion, we should expect an increase in the degree of tension on the line of contact of the opposing sides of the Karabakh conflict by the summer, the director of the Center for Regional Studies Richard Kirakosyan believes.
"In the light of the clashes forecasted, the absence of really effective mechanisms of preventing the reconnaissance by fight and as a result, the mass assaults of the Azerbaijani Army disturbs me", the analyst stressed.
The second half of May was characterized by a significant increase in tension on the Karabakh-Azerbaijan contact line. The Azerbaijani military controlled missile damaged the air defense missile system "Osa" of the NKR Defense Army. On May 18, the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs stated in their statement that on May 15 the Azerbaijani Armed Forces fired a missile through the contact line of the sides. On May 16 and 17, the Armenian military responded with mortar fire.
At the same time, Kirakosyan noted the increased level of the semantic load in the reaction of the OSCE Minsk Group to the intensification of incidents in Karabakh. In his view, the last statement clearly indicates the initiators of the May clashes, the asymmetrical nature of the actions of the opposing sides. A similar concern, according to his estimates, was sounded in the statement of the official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova.