In the largest outbreak of conflict between the two countries since the 2020 ceasefire deals, fighting on the Armenia-Azerbaijan border has resulted in the deaths of roughly 100 personnel.

Monday night, Azerbaijani soldiers utilized heavy artillery, drones, and small arms to strike eastern Armenian communities outside Nagorno-Karabakh, previously the epicenter of a protracted battle, according to Armenia's defense ministry.

Armenia reported losing at least 49 soldiers; Azerbaijan reported losing 50.

Separately, Armenia allegedly published images of Azerbaijani forces attempting to cross the Armenian border.

Azerbaijan claimed it was merely responding to a provocation by the Armenian military, which allegedly put landmines near Azerbaijan's supply lines, but the strike on hitherto unaffected areas of the protracted battle looks unique.

A few days prior, during a conference call with foreign heads of state and Russian President Vladimir Putin, Armenian prime minister Nikol Pashinyan expressed fear that Azerbaijan would be tempted to attack his nation while Russia, Armenia's primary ally, is engaged in a protracted war in Ukraine.

The Kremlin mediated a ceasefire agreement in 2020 that ended a month-long conflict over Azerbaijan's separatist Nagorno-Karabakh area.

There are still approximately 2,000 Russian peacekeepers stationed there.

As a result of a large-scale provocation by the Azerbaijani side, intense gunfire is ongoing. According to the Armenian Defense Ministry, Armenia's military forces have initiated a proportional response. In a statement to parliament later in the day, Mr. Pashinyan stated that the degree of enmity had diminished, but that active fronts still existed in certain regions.

Mr. Pashinyan informed the Armenian parliament that Russia again arranged a truce of hostilities early yesterday morning, but that fresh, if less violent fighting was reported an hour later.

The Armenian leader requested military help from Putin for their Collective Security Treaty Organisation responsibilities.

Dmitry Peskov, Putin's spokesman, stated that the president was "making every effort to contribute to the de-escalation of tensions on the border." Moscow has not reacted to the proposal.

The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe urged for a ceasefire, asking the parties not to "squander" the ceasefire agreement reached in 2020, which has held for the most part for the past two years.

In related news, the office of French president Emmanuel Macron promised to bring up the hostilities at the United Nations Security Council this week, and Turkey threw its weight behind Azerbaijan as Hulusi Akar, the country's defense minister, accused Armenia of inciting the fighting and vowed to stand by Baku "in its just cause."

Les affrontements erupted less than two weeks before Armenia was scheduled to transfer to Azerbaijan the so-called Lachin corridor, a mountain road between Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh.

Azerbaijan has accused Armenia of dragging its heels in implementing portions of the ceasefire agreement and repeatedly violating it, which Armenia has denied.