The drone was downed at around 2 pm local time in Agdam District east of the separatist region, the ministry said, without giving any other detail.

This comes as tensions escalated along the so-called Line of Contact separating Azerbaijani and Armenia forces near Nagorno-Karabakh and the two countries’ border.

Eight Armenian and three Azerbaijani troops have been confirmed killed in clashes this month.

Armenia captured nearly one-fifth of Azerbaijan’s internationally-recognized territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding districts, in a war after the Soviet breakup in 1991.

While major hostilities ended with a cease-fire in 1994, no peace agreement has been signed.

Armenia has yet to comply with four UN Security Council resolutions calling for immediate and unconditional withdrawal from the occupied territory.

Azerbaijan says it reserves the right to use force to regain control of the territory should peace efforts led by Russia, France and the US fail.