Azerbaijanis Open Fire on Armenian Tractor Driver; Russians Order Equipment to Withdraw

The goal of the Azerbaijani side seems to have been to intimidate and prevent agricultural work from taking place. This was stated to 24News by Georgi Poghosyan, the mayor of Berdashen village in the Martuni region of the Republic of Artsakh, commenting on provocations carried out by Azerbaijan over two consecutive days.

Poghosyan noted that on February 28, when the Azerbaijani side fired at an area of the village, the tractor driver was working alone in the area, and there were no Russian peacekeepers nearby. 'But yesterday, in the presence of the Russians, two tractors were operating. After the incident, the Russians and Azerbaijanis talked, and it was decided that the equipment should be withdrawn from the area,' he explained.

According to the mayor of Berdashen, there were no losses among people or civilian objects. 'In the part of the field where the shootings occurred, agricultural work has stopped. There were 2-3 bursts of gunfire; they shot at the tractor once, the tractor driver continued to work, but then they fired 2-3 more times, and he stopped working. Then the tractor turned towards the Russian side. The Russians said to halt the work and ordered that the equipment be withdrawn from the area. There is still room for talks with the Azerbaijanis; the Russians should talk. But I cannot say what the final resolution will be,' concluded the head of Berdashen.

The tractor driver, Slavic Vardanyan, told the media that he was not injured in the gunfire. 'Once they shot, I continued working. When they shot the second time, I went towards the Russians,' he said. Vardanyan found it difficult to specify the distance of the positions from the plot of land. 'After the shots, the Russians walked on foot towards the border to negotiate with the Azerbaijanis. From the plot of land, the Azerbaijani positions are visible. It's the first time they are shooting while I’m working.'

The farmer was unaware of when he could resume his work and expressed a desire to plant carrots and pomegranates. 'It’s one of the best areas; there’s just a small piece of land left, will they take that too?' he lamented.

Earlier, the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Artsakh issued a press release stating that around 16:55 on February 28, during agricultural work with a 'Jonder' brand tractor in the administrative area of Berdashen village, 53-year-old A. Avanesyan came under gunfire from the enemy's combat positions, halting agricultural activities.

According to the Artsakh Interior Ministry, the ceasefire was also violated the following day. 'On March 1 at around 14:00, while 59-year-old S. Vardanyan was conducting agricultural work with a 'Belarus' brand tractor in the area known as 'Daval', gunfire was directed at his tractor from nearby Azerbaijani combat positions, which also resulted in the suspension of agricultural work,' it reported.