Russia calls on Armenia and Azerbaijan to respect ceasefire in Nagorno-Karabakh

World leaders call for halt to fighting that has killed more than 500 people in 17 days

Russia has made a fresh appeal to Armenia and Azerbaijan to respect a badly fraying ceasefire in the breakaway South Caucasus region of Nagorno-Karabakh with both sides blaming each other for new attacks, including on civilians.

The truce was supposed to come into force last Saturday but appears to be failing, with the defence ministry in Nagorno-Karabakh - a territory inside Azerbaijan but governed by ethnic Armenians - accusing Azeri forces of launching artillery and rocket attacks in several areas, and claiming to have shot down an Azeri Su-25 fighter jet, though Azerbaijan denies this.