Inter Milan star calls on UN to “act” as show trial of Ruben Vardanyan set to begin in Azerbaijan

Inter Milan midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan has expressed support to former Nagorno-Karabakh official Ruben Vardanyan who is currently jailed in Azerbaijan on fabricated charges.

A court hearing of Vardanyan’s case is scheduled for January 17 in Azerbaijan and is widely seen as a show trial. 

Vardanyan, the former State Minister of Nagorno-Karabakh, has vehemently denied all charges against him which include “financing terrorism” and “illegally entering” Karabakh. Vardanyan, as well as many experts, have described the charges as falsifications. The former chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court Luis Moreno Ocampo recently once again slammed the charges as bogus, emphasizing that Baku is using the show trials to cover up its crimes in Nagorno-Karabakh.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan shared on Instagram Ruben Vardanyan’s most recent statement and called for the release of all Armenian prisoners.

In a separate post on X, Mkhitaryan called on the UN and Amnesty International, among other organizations, to “act.”

Act @UN @UNGeneva @UNWatch @amnesty @amnestyitalia @UNESCO @HRF @humanrights @article19org @IntlCrimCourt @Refugees @RefugeesMedia https://t.co/LAgeoWphQ5

— Henrikh Mkhitaryan (@HenrikhMkh) January 16, 2025

In 2023, armed forces of the Government of Azerbaijan invaded Nagorno-Karabakh, leading to the forced displacement of nearly 120,000 Armenians. During the flight of the refugees, Vardanyan and seven other former officials were arrested and have been facing politically motivated, fabricated charges.

Azerbaijan has been refusing to release other POWs too.