Armenia attacks Azerbaijani positions using mortars: Defense Ministry

The ministry reported no casualties, promising to retaliate.

"[Armenian] fire attacks on [Azerbaijani] villages and civilian population are making Azerbaijan to take adequate and stiff measures using all of its military potential,” the ministry said on its website. "This will result in heavier Armenian military losses, responsibility for which will lie solely with the Armenian leadership.”

The ministry said the Azerbaijani army is "fully ready” to liberate the country’s Armenian-occupied territory. 

"We are confident that we will win this right cause,” it said.

Two Armenian servicemen were killed and another was injured in skirmishes with Azerbaijani forces south and east of the Nagorno-Karabakh region on the night of Jan. 2-3, the "defense army” of the separatist region said on January 3.

Karen Samvelovich Grigoryan and Vardan Martikovich Mkrtchyan died and Volodya Gagikovich Arutyunyan was wounded while repelling Azerbaijani "sabotage attacks”, it said, claiming the Azerbaijani army too suffered losses.  

The Defense Ministry in Baku denied the claim of "sabotage attacks”, saying the enemy losses might have been caused by Armenian friendly fire. 

In a statement on its website, the ministry said Azerbaijan’s armed forces are "seriously preparing” to liberate lands that are under Armenian occupation.

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

Although major hostilities ended with a ceasefire in 1994, no peace agreement has been signed.

At least 19 soldiers were killed in August when skirmishes in and around Nagorno-Karabakh turned the deadliest in 20 years. 

Azerbaijan in November shot down an Armenian helicopter gunship that was flying near Azerbaijani army positions in Agdam District.