/By AzerNews/

By Sara Rajabova

The recent escalation of tensions on the contact line of Armenian-Azerbaijani troops is drawing concerns of a new war in the South Caucasus region from international community.

Foreign countries and international organizations have called both sides of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict to refrain from escalating the situation on the frontline.

The Armenian armed forces have recently made the situation even worse by using large-caliber machine guns. Frequent shelling by the Armenian military has put the life of the residents of Azerbaijan’s frontline settlements in danger causing casualties and serious damage to homes and farms.

In light of the events taking place, a representative from the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe visited the frontline to check real situation on the ground.

Robert Walter, rapporteur of the PACE committee on political affairs and democracy for the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict visited Azerbaijan’s frontline regions and met with servicemen and residents of frontal settlements, Azerbaijan’s defense ministry reported on September 17.

During a meeting with Defense Minister Zakir Hasanov on September 15, Walter expressed his wish to visit the contact line of Armenian and Azerbaijani troops. Accompanied by representatives of the Ministry, Walter was taken by helicopter to the frontline zone.

Walter visited the Barda, Tartar, and Agdam regions, met with servicemen, as well as observed the opposing side.

The residents of the Tartar region’s Gapanli village, which are constantly exposed to shelling from the Armenian side, informed the PACE rapporteur about the shelling of the settlements with mortars and large-caliber weapons by the enemy.

They also brought to Walter’s attention the fact that a few days ago as a result of the shelling of a wedding ceremony, two women and a child were wounded.

The frequent ceasefire violations by the Armenian armed forces have caused serious damages to homes and farms in these villages and left many injuries and deaths. Almost, every house within these villages has been hit by deliberate or stray Armenian bullets.

In turn, Walter said he will take advantage of information obtained during the visit, and expressed confidence in resolving the conflict within the norms and principles of international law.

During meetings with soldiers, who perform combat missions on the frontline, the PACE rapporteur heard soldiers and officers and answered their questions.

Despite the fact that the representatives of international organizations frequently visit these regions and check the situation on the ground, no effective measures have been taken to stop Armenian aggression against civilians.

In late August, representatives of the OSCE met with the residents of the settlements located near the frontline following their traditional monitoring.

The residents, who experience great hardships due to Armenian aggression over the many years, complained to OSCE representatives of regular violations of ceasefire by Armenians, saying that their lives are under threat due to the shelling of villages.

They also complained that the activities of the international mediators to resolve the conflict have not yielded any results.

The situation on the contact line of Armenian-Azerbaijani troops remains tense despite a ceasefire agreement that the sides signed in 1994. The Armenian army continually violates the armistice from almost all directions, consistently firing on Azerbaijani positions.

This occupant country remains unpunished for the crimes that it committed against the Azerbaijani people.

Armenia and Azerbaijan fought a lengthy war that ended with the signing of a fragile ceasefire in 1994. More than 20,000 Azerbaijanis were killed and over 1 million were displaced as a result of the large-scale hostilities. Since the war, the Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan's territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding regions.

Armenia continues the occupation in defiance of four UN Security Council resolutions calling for immediate and unconditional withdrawal of armed forces.

Peace talks brokered by mediators from Russia, France and the U.S. have produced no results so far.