Armenian Prosecutor General Anna Vardapetyan raised the issue of Armenian prisoners of war at a meeting with her Russian and Azerbaijani counterparts.
Russian Prosecutor General Igor Krasnov hosted Armenian and Azerbaijani Prosecutor Generals Anna Vardapetyan and Kyamran Aliyev for a meeting in Saint Petersburg on June 15.
Anna Vardapetyan expressed concern regarding Azerbaijan’s failure to fully fulfill the humanitarian requirements of the tripartite statement signed by the leaders of the Republic of Armenia, the Russian Federation and the Republic of Azerbaijan on November 9, 2020, and attempts to escalate the situation.
“Since the signing of the statement, Armenian prisoners of war have been kept in Azerbaijan, 33 of them have been given jail terms. There is also direct evidence of the kidnapping of two Armenian servicemen by the armed forces of Azerbaijan. Moreover, the Azerbaijani side’s refusal to return a number of persons to the Republic of Armenia is based on the fact that these persons ended up in Azerbaijan after the signing of the Statement, while the Armenian side fully fulfilled the requirements of Clause 8 of the document,” Anna Vardapetyan said.
The Prosecutor General also referred to the incidents of the past few days, the firing from the Azerbaijani side towards the Armenian positions and civilian objects near the Yeraskh settlement and in the area of Tegh, emphasizing that those are a consequence of no clear condemnation of those actions..
“Azerbaijan’s behavior not only does not contribute to the implementation of the provisions of the Statement, but also contradicts the goals and meaning of that document, further exacerbating the situation,” Anna Vardapetyan emphasized.
At the end of the meeting, the Prosecutor General of the Republic of Armenia reaffirmed the priority of Armenia to fulfill the humanitarian requirements and stressed that these requirements have not been fully fulfilled by Azerbaijan.
