Pompeo implores Armenia and Azerbaijan to stop escalating violence as death toll climbs

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Tuesday implored Armenia and Azerbaijan to curtail the increasingly heavy violence that drew international calls for cease-fire, and that prompted the opposing nations to declare martial law over the weekend. 

The two South Caucasus countries are embroiled in conflict over the breakaway Nagorno-Karabakh region, which is located inside Azerbaijan but controlled by Armenians. 

In recent days, violence has escalated, with each side reporting being hit by the other with heavy artillery. The fighting has brought "significant casualties," and has killed civilians, the State Department said. Some estimates have noted at least 65 deaths.

While in Greece on Tuesday, Pompeo said that "both sides need to stop the violence."

The belligerents should work with the Minsk group of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, and "return to substantive negotiations as quickly as possible," he also said.

Situated amid Iran, Turkey, Georgia and Russia, the nations of Armenia and Azerbaijan have staked competing claims over the mountainous Nagorno-Karabakh region. In 1991, when the Soviet Union disbanded, the Nagorno-Karabakh enclave declared independence, triggering a war between Armenian-backed separatists and Azerbaijan. 

The opposing sides agreed to a cease-fire in 1994, but violence intermittently has flared. Conflict resumed over the summer. Each side accused the other of aggression.

The situation grew increasingly tense over the weekend, as violence erupted, sparking international concern.

"The United States is alarmed by reports of large scale military action along the Line of Contact in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone that has resulted in significant casualties, including civilians," State Department spokesperson Morgan Ortagus said in a Sunday statement.

As violence continued into the week, concern intensified. France and Germany have urged calm, while Malaysia asked for "maximum restraint" and de-escalation. 

The pleas for cease-fire come amid fears that the fighting could trigger wider regional hostilities.

Turkey, a member of NATO, has declared support for Azerbaijan, while Russia is bound to a mutual regional defense group that includes Armenia. That group, the Collective Security Treaty Organization, also involves Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. 

The organization as of Tuesday has encouraged a peaceful settlement.

"The solution to the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh is possible only via political and diplomatic means," the group said in a statement.

The U.N. Security Council is expected to hold emergency talks on Sept. 29 to discuss the fighting, Radio Free Europe reported.