Azerbaijan still holds Armenian prisoners due to long history of enmity, says FM

Despite the efforts made towards establishing peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan, a number of humanitarian issues remain unresolved, Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan said on Monday.

"When we talk about the institutionalization of peace and the establishment of good-neighborly relations, we must note that there are issues that are still unresolved or difficult to resolve at this point. And here, we must undoubtedly mention the issue of the release of captives and prisoners being held in Baku,” Mirzoyan said at a parliamentary committee hearing on the 2026 state budget.

The foreign minister emphasized that the issue of prisoners, as well as determining the fate of the missing persons, remain primary areas of focus as complex but solvable issues.

"If you ask for my personal position, this is a major obstacle, the complexity of which is also a natural objective consequence of the conflict. Efforts still need to be made to resolve it," the foreign minister said.

He added that the issue is also related to the distrust that has developed between the two societies and the long history of enmity.

"It is an expression of the distrust that exists between the two societies, taking into account the history of enmity and bloodshed between the two countries," said Mirzoyan.

Armenia will remain consistent in solving all humanitarian issues and in shaping a peaceful, cooperative environment, Mirzoyan added.

'Believing in the necessity of forming a peaceful and cooperative atmosphere around the Republic of Armenia, we will be persistently working towards the resolution of all issues step by step,' FM Mirzoyan concluded.

Several prominent Karabakh politicians are among the prisoners and detainees held in Azerbaijan.

When the entire Armenian population of Nagorno Karabakh was fleeing to Armenia during the 2023 September Azerbaijani offensive, a number of high-ranking then-incumbent and former statesmen and officials were detained and charged with what has been widely described as fabricated charges, including terrorism. The detainees and POWs include ex-presidents of Nagorno-Karabakh Arkady Ghukasyan, Bako Sahakyan, Arayik Harutyunyan, then-Speaker of Parliament Davit Ishkhanyan, former FM Davit Babayan, former Defense Minister Levon Mnatsakanyan, as well as former State Minister, entrepreneur and Aurora Humanitarian Initiative co-founder Ruben Vardanyan. 

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan reiterated earlier in September that his administration is working on a daily basis to secure the release of the remaining Armenian prisoners held in Azerbaijan.