Battles continue in Karabakh and Washington is hosting the two parties to the conflict to convince them to cease fire

Fighting continued Friday in several axes in the disputed Karabakh region between Azerbaijan and Armenia, while Washington is hosting the foreign ministers of the two countries with the aim of reaching a ceasefire agreement.

 Al-Jazeera correspondent reported that combat operations continued to varying degrees in the Agdara, Fozuli, Hadrut, Gabriel and Qubadli axes in the Karabakh region.

And the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry announced that some areas in the region witnessed fighting, including areas close to the contact line separating the two sides.

The ministry said in a statement on Friday that operations continued, to varying degrees, over the past night in the regions of Agdara, Faduli, Hadrot, Gabriel and Gobadli.

It indicated that the Armenian forces opened artillery fire and shelled the Azerbaijani defense lines with mortar shells.

She pointed out that the Azerbaijani army directed strikes on positions of the Armenian forces in the Fuzuli, Gabriel and Gobadli axes, and took control of important sites and heights.

She explained that the Armenian infrastructure and military capabilities have suffered unavoidable losses along the front line, stressing that the Armenian forces suffer from a shortage of equipment, weapons, ammunition and food.

The Azerbaijani army announced the neutralization of 4 Armenian drones during the confrontations between the two sides in the Karabakh region.

A statement issued by the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said, Friday, that the army's anti-aircraft guns hit two Armenian drones, causing them to crash.

The statement added that the Azerbaijani army managed to land two drones also using technical means.

For its part, the Armenian Ministry of Defense confirmed that fighting had occurred in several regions, and said that the town of Martoni in Karabakh was bombed again during the night, and Azerbaijan denies this.

Azerbaijani forces say they have made gains on the ground, including full control of the border with Iran, but Armenia denies this.

The authorities of Karabakh region said that their forces repelled the attacks of the Azerbaijani army, and stressed that they were in control of the situation.

Washington talks

Politically,

began in Washington aimed at ending the fighting that has lasted for about a month, as US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo met with his counterparts from Armenia and Azerbaijan separately.

Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Piramov met with Pompeo for about 40 minutes.

Moments after his departure, Armenia's Foreign Minister Zohrab Manatsakyanian arrived to meet the American minister.

The US attempt came after the collapse of a truce brokered by the two sides, with Russia.

Shortly before the start of the Washington talks, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told reporters in Istanbul that he hoped Moscow and Ankara could work together to resolve the conflict.

"Turkey believes that it has the right, like Russia, to participate in peace," Erdogan added.