Two Armenian soldiers killed in clashes with Azerbaijan

Two Armenian soldiers were killed in border clashes with Azerbaijani forces on Monday, Yerevan said, in the latest military incident between the Caucasus rivals since last year's war over the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region.

The six-week war last autumn claimed about 6,500 lives and ended in November with a Russian-brokered ceasefire under which Armenia ceded territories it had controlled for decades.

Both Azerbaijan and Armenia have reported occasional shootouts in recent months along their shared border, sparking fears of a flare up in the territorial dispute.

The Armenian defence ministry said Azerbaijani forces opened fire on their positions at 09:50 (0550 GMT) on Monday from Nakhichevan, an Azerbaijani exclave in southwestern Armenia.

An Armenian soldier was wounded in the stomach and died on the way to hospital, the statement said.