Baku is Delaying the Issue of Prisoners for Specific Purposes: Arman Tatoyan

The Human Rights Defender of Armenia, Arman Tatoyan, addressed the issue of Armenian prisoners held in Azerbaijan during a press conference today.

“On December 28, a representative of Azerbaijan sent a letter to the UN Secretary-General, focusing on the case of 62 Armenian servicemen from the Shirak region. It was stated that Azerbaijan had conducted a joint anti-terrorism operation with the Ministry of Defense and security services, discovering 62 Armenian servicemen, who, according to their phrasing, are primarily from Shirak. They have been detained, and investigative procedures are being conducted against them. Azerbaijan claims that these individuals were sent from Armenia to carry out terrorist acts against Azerbaijani servicemen and civilians. Based on this, political conclusions are also being drawn, including calls for the UN to persuade Armenia not to violate their territorial integrity, and raising the question of whether Armenia has violated the trilateral statement of November 10,” said Tatoyan.

He noted that Azerbaijan is clearly politicizing the issue of Armenian prisoners. It is unacceptable at this post-war stage to politicize humanitarian and human rights issues, as it represents a gross violation. According to international demands, prisoners of war or civilian detainees must be released and returned to their countries immediately after the cessation of military operations. Initiating criminal proceedings against them is prohibited, and their detention and arrest are viewed as punishment, which is also forbidden. Moreover, according to the Defender, the artificial prolongation of these issues is also prohibited and constitutes a war crime. All of this is enshrined in international conventions, particularly Article 3 of the 1949 Geneva Conventions, whose requirements also apply to Azerbaijan.

“It is important to emphasize that the politicization of the issue regarding prisoners is absolutely unacceptable. In reality, point 8 of the trilateral statement of November 9 states that the parties shall carry out the exchange of prisoners and persons held by the parties. It is unfortunate that there is no deadline mentioned, nor is there an urgent requirement in that document. However, what is crucial is that this demand is independent of others, not only in terms of its relation to politics but also that this demand is an international one. While the parties may reach agreements on territorial and other issues, altering deadlines and negotiating, there is no such allowance in this matter; this is an issue of international law,” he added.

According to Tatoyan, today, however, Azerbaijan is arguing that the November 10 declaration pertains only to situations existing before November 10. This is also unacceptable, as the point regarding prisoners should apply to situations following November 10 as long as there are still prisoners related to these military operations.

“They are engaging in a blatant abuse of legal processes. Why? Because, through artificial legal processes, they obscure the issues surrounding their return. Moreover, they attempt to present the detention of our soldiers as if Armenia had violated the trilateral declaration. I want to emphasize that it is the Azerbaijani authorities that have violated that trilateral declaration, as practice shows that their behavior contradicts the intentions of the three parties who signed that declaration. In this case, a question arises: did the Armenian side not transfer the two individuals convicted of committing crimes in Karvachar to Azerbaijan? Azerbaijan has clearly prolonged the return of prisoners. They are doing this for specific purposes—to cause psychological suffering to our society and to create tension,” he added.

The Defender stated that all efforts are being made towards the return of the prisoners. He mentioned that his recent visit to Russia was also related to this issue, but he cannot share further details.