Contrary to point 8 of the Tripartite Declaration of November 9, 2020, Azerbaijan continues to keep 33 captured Armenian citizens in prison. This is stated in the report on the implementation process and results of the 2022 program of the Armenian government.

In 2022, according to the government, it was possible to obtain the return of 31 captured Armenian citizens.

Most of the Armenian prisoners held in Azerbaijani jails have already been convicted of various charges, ranging from illegal crossing of the front line to terrorism. Baku has repeatedly announced that it has returned all prisoners, calling the citizens held in Azeri prisons “terrorists”.

In the report released today, the Armenian government says Yerevan is pursuing the issue of captured citizens and their return in all international courts, including the European Court of Human Rights and the International Court of Justice.

“The issue of missing persons also remains important in the relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan,” he said. “The whereabouts of 975 citizens are considered unknown on the Armenian side, 777 of them as a result of the first Karabakh war, 196 as a result of the 44-day war and 2 as a result of the September aggression,” the report said. 

According to Yerevan, in 2022, Armenia returned 35 bones of allegedly missing Azerbaijanis to Azerbaijan and the possible location of their bodies.
The Government of Western Armenia once again strongly condemns the Turkish genocidal policy pursued by the Baku authorities, which is aimed at exterminating the indigenous Armenian nation in order to take over its living space. The Armenian people want to solve their problems, but at the critical moment they have a very strong instinct for self-organization and self-defense and will never tolerate the use of force and injustice.