ANKARA

The Turkic Council conveyed condolences Thursday to Azerbaijan for martyrs in clashes with Armenia.

“#TurkicCouncil wished God’s mercy on 2,873 martyrs who gave their lives for their homeland during just struggle for their territorial integrity of our Member State, brotherly #Azerbaijan,” it said on Twitter.

The Council wished a quick recovery to veterans and conveyed condolences to Azerbaijan and the entire Turkic world.

Azerbaijan’s Defense Ministry said Thursday the soldiers were martyred in the Upper Karabakh war waged by the army to liberate its lands from Armenian occupation.

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev decided to commemorate the martyrs Friday.

Relations between the former Soviet republics have been tense since 1991 when the Armenian military occupied Nagorno-Karabakh, also known as Upper Karabakh, a territory recognized as part of Azerbaijan, and seven adjacent regions.

When new clashes erupted Sept. 27, the Armenian army launched attacks on civilians and Azerbaijani forces and violated several humanitarian cease-fire agreements.

During the conflict, Azerbaijan liberated several cities and nearly 300 settlements and villages from the Armenian occupation.

The two countries signed a Russian-brokered agreement Nov. 10 to end fighting and work toward a comprehensive resolution.

The truce is seen as a victory for Azerbaijan and a defeat for Armenia, whose armed forces have been withdrawing in line with the agreement.