For Aliyev, it will be clear that this must happen: Vardanian's lawyer

David Vardanian, the son of Ruben Vardanian, and Vardanian's international legal advisor Jared Genser were guests on the popular American broadcaster and lawyer Hugh Hewitt's show, discussing Ruben Vardanian, who is detained unlawfully in Azerbaijan, and other Armenian prisoners.

Below is an excerpt from the interview.

Hugh Hewitt: We are trying to take time during this show to inform the audience that there are political prisoners in the world, one of whom is Ruben Vardanian, who is held in Azerbaijan. His son, David, joins us along with Jared Genser, who is an internationally recognized human rights defender. David, can you talk about your father's conditions of detention? Are you able to communicate with him, visit him? Is he isolated, or is he treated relatively well as a political prisoner?

David Vardanian: It is very important for the audience to understand the situation we are dealing with. According to various international organizations' reports, including Freedom House, Azerbaijan is classified among the world's unfree countries and is considered one of the most closed authoritarian regimes. The problem is that since my father's arrest in September 2023, no family member has been able to see him in person. The only thing we have had are phone calls, which last a few minutes. There is also the International Committee of the Red Cross that used to visit prisoners, but unfortunately, this year Azerbaijan announced the closure of the offices of many international organizations operating in the country, including the Red Cross, which means that prisoners will now be even more isolated. To imagine the degree of isolation, I should mention that Jared, our lawyer, who has been on the team since late 2024, has not only been unable to visit my father but also to speak with him or review the case materials. So everything is happening in complete isolation, in violation of all international norms and laws, and we are extremely concerned.

Hugh Hewitt: Mr. Genser, you have been very involved in these issues... Getting hostages out is a very delicate task. If you push too hard, you might push him deeper into the prison system. If you say nothing, people might forget about him. So how are you working on this issue with Trump's team? Who is negotiating for Ruben and the other Armenian Christians?

Jared Genser: The issue has been addressed at the highest levels. You know that the U.S. President's Special Envoy, Steve Biegun, visited Azerbaijan to discuss various issues of bilateral relations, but also to call for the release of Armenian Christian prisoners. Then National Security Advisor Mike Waltz spoke with the Azerbaijani National Security Council and even made a note about that call. He explicitly stated that President Trump would like to see a peace treaty signed, and within the framework of that overall process, the release of prisoners. Thus, we could not have higher-level engagement, really. In my understanding, the Trump administration is now looking for ways to send some very clear signals through political actions that will make it clear to the Azerbaijani president that the release of the prisoners must happen.