“We resolutely condemn and reject the statement of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Armenia dated 28 February 2025 on allegations about the mistreatment of Armenian detainees and people accused of war crimes in Azerbaijan, including baseless claims about their ongoing trial process,” said Aykhan Hajizada, spokesperson for Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as he commented on the baseless statement of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Armenia regarding trials of Armenian detainees and peoples accused of war crimes in Azerbaijan.

“Former separatist leaders that Armenia took care of for almost 30 years and other detainees of Armenian origin either have been charged or convicted of war crimes, ethnic cleansing, military aggression, torture, and other serious offenses. Azerbaijan has rights and obligations to investigate and prosecute these offenses under the Geneva Conventions and generally under international and domestic law. These detentions have a proper legal basis and do not impair the detainees’ rights. Even if the detainees were prisoners-of-war, under the Third Geneva Convention, prisoners-of-war against whom criminal proceedings for an indictable offense are pending may be detained until the end of such proceedings and, if necessary, until the completion of the punishment.

All the rights and duties of the accused people are duly ensured and explained, and the court proceedings and testimonies were recorded. Allegations of ill-treatment against prisoners in Azerbaijan have been investigated independently and are false. Regular visits by representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross and telephone and video calls with family members were facilitated, most recently in February.

It is well-known that Azerbaijan, both as a humanitarian gesture and consistent with its obligations under international humanitarian law since the 2020 war, has released and repatriated more than 200 Armenians in its custody who were entitled to prisoner-of-war status or considered detainees. However, following Azerbaijan’s return of prisoners-of-war, some of them passed through imprisonment and interrogation carried out by Armenian authorities. We would also like to remind the Armenian MFA that Azerbaijan has also made a huge gesture by allowing more than 10,000 illegal Armenian armed forces to lay down arms and leave the territories of Azerbaijan following the 2023 anti-terror measures conducted by Azerbaijan.

Unlike Azerbaijan, Armenia neither has launched any investigations into the cases of degrading treatment of Azerbaijani prisoners-of-war and detained civilians nor cooperated in providing information about the whereabouts of 4000 missing Azerbaijanis. According to the witnesses and numerous facts, all the Azerbaijani POWs were tortured, ill-treated, and held in degrading conditions, in a grave violation of international humanitarian law, including the Geneva Conventions of 1949.

Obviously, such a statement from the Armenian side demonstrates how nervous the political establishment of Armenia is about the ongoing trial against the people accused of war crimes once they openly supported by all means to sustain the act and policy of aggression against Azerbaijan. Armenia’s state responsibility and other illegal actions as an occupying and aggressive country is a fact that cannot be denied. Thus, holding perpetrators accountable is a just cause that political manipulations cannot undermine.

Instead of applauding the trial against the people accused of war crimes, calling the court a “staged” one attests that Armenia is not interested in healing the wounds it has caused for decades and facing the truth that this trial might bring to the surface.

At this critical juncture, the Azerbaijani side expects the Armenian side to refrain from baseless statements that undermine peace efforts in the region, which also includes bringing perpetrators of war crimes to justice,” Hajizada added.