Border tensions on the contact line between Nagorno Karabakh and Armenia have come to a head, but Armenian troops keep the situation under control, Defense Minister Seyran Ohanyan said Wednesday, December 9, Armenia Now reports.

On December 8, Azerbaijan used a tank for the first time since the 1994 ceasefire agreement to shell Karabakh positions amid ongoing border tensions.

Ohanyan went on to blame Azerbaijan for the recent escalation, saying that Baku “doesn’t understand human language.” “The rival not only rejects investigative mechanisms but is also resisting international investigation, which can reveal the instigator and give a targeted assessment,” he said. “It’s time for international institutions to seriously consider such mechanisms.”

The minister also noted that he had discussed the matter earlier during the day in a phone conversation with the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Ambassador Andrzej Kasprzyk.

During the conversation, the parties discussed the current situation on the Armenia-Azerbaijan border and the contact line between Nagorno Karabakh and Azerbaijan.

The Minister briefed the ambassador on Azerbaijan's provocations during the constitutional referendum in Armenia and the following days, as well as Armenia's retaliation. In this context, Ohanyan expressed concern over the rival's continuous destabilization of situation, stressing that Azerbaijan used 125-mm tank cannons, which may lead to further escalation.

In view of keeping Azerbaijan within the logic of negotiation process, the minister also stressed the need for the OSCE Minsk Group’s targeted reaction.

Ambassador Kasprzyk, in turn, expressed concern over the situation and pledged to take corresponding measures.