OSCE to monitor Nagorny Karabakh ceasefire

YEREVAN. October 26. KAZINFORM OSCE officials will conduct on Tuesday a scheduled monitoring of the situation at the contact line between Armenian and Azerbaijani troops on the border with the disputed Nagorny Karabakh region; Kazinform refers to RIA Novosti.

Armenia and Azerbaijan frequently accuse each other of violating the 1994 ceasefire agreement in the disputed area. Shooting between the Armenian and Azerbaijani troops sometimes result in soldiers' deaths.

Officials from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe regularly monitor the ceasefire in the region to prevent a sudden escalation of tension between the two countries.

The conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over Nagorny Karabakh, a predominantly ethnic Armenian region, first erupted in 1988, when the region claimed independence from Azerbaijan to join Armenia.

Over 30,000 people are estimated to have died on both sides between 1988 and 1994, when a ceasefire was agreed. Nagorny Karabakh has remained in Armenian control and tensions between Azerbaijan and Armenia have persisted; Kazinform cites RIA Novosti.

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