Azernews.Az

OSCE mediators brokering settlement to the Nagorno Karabakh conflict are ``deeply concerned`` by recent reports about a series of deadly clashes along the Armenia-Azerbaijan border and the Line of Contact of the two countries` troops, a statement posted on the OSCE website on Friday says.

``Such senseless acts violate the commitment of the parties to refrain from the use of force and to seek a peaceful settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict, and contradict the spirit of the January 23, 2012 joint statement of Presidents Aliyev, Sargsyan, and Medvedev,`` says the statement, issued by the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs - Robert Bradtke of the United States, Igor Popov of Russia and Jacques Faure of France.

``The co-chairs strongly condemn any loss of life, and reiterate that there is no alternative to a peacefully negotiated settlement of the conflict. The co-chairs urge all sides to respect the 1994 ceasefire and to abstain from retaliatory measures that would lead to further escalation,`` the statement said.

Armenian officials say three Armenian servicemen were killed when gunmen shot at a military vehicle along the border with Azerbaijan early on Friday.

Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan reportedly accused Azerbaijan of opening the fire, threatening to retaliate.

The incident took place two days after a village in the same region came under fire from Azerbaijan, the Armenian officials claimed. No one was hurt in that attack.

Baku and Yerevan frequently accuse each other of breaching the ceasefire that has been in place between the two countries since a 1990s war. In one of the recent shootings, an officer of Azerbaijan`s armed forces was killed.

The Nagorno Karabakh conflict emerged in 1988 over Armenia`s territorial claims against Azerbaijan. The ensuing war claimed some 30,000 lives and displaced up to a million Azerbaijanis. About 20 percent of Azerbaijani territory, including the Nagorno Karabakh region, has been occupied by Armenian armed forces since a ceasefire was signed in 1994. Peace talks have been largely fruitless so far.

Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. Security Council`s four resolutions on its pullout from Nagorno Karabakh and seven surrounding regions.