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“New Azerbaijani Defense Minister Zakir Hasanov is not a military man, however, tends to prove his compliance to the new post,” said Alex Jackson, an independent expert on Caspian regional issues, editor of Caucasian Review of International Affairs.

The upsurge in violence is most likely connected with the Paris talks held between Armenian and Azerbaijani FMs, Jackson believes. However it is not the only possible reason.

According to him this could be related to the recent personnel turnovers in the Azerbaijani military leadership. The expert noted that Zakir Hasanov is not a military man; he's an internal affairs apparatchik.

“Perhaps demonstrating the armed forces' combat readiness is a good way to prove his credentials to Aliyev,” the expert notes.

Besides, he doesn't have sufficient control yet over the armed forces, and frontline commanders are escalating things beyond their authorization.