Efforts to visit Armenians held in Azerbaijan through intermediaries fail, FM says

Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Ararat Mirzoyan has said that Armenia has approached partner countries with a request to visit Armenians held in Azerbaijan, but these efforts have been unsuccessful.

Mirzoyan spoke about the matter in parliament in response to a question from MP Lilit Galstyan.

The MP asked what international law mechanisms Armenia had used to approach third countries and on what grounds these initiatives had been rejected. She also referred to the minister’s earlier statement that Azerbaijan, in response to these efforts, had said, “Stay away from us.”

Mirzoyan clarified that Azerbaijan’s response was directed at the countries acting as intermediaries, not at Armenia.

“They told the third countries to stay away,” Mirzoyan said.

The minister explained that international practice provides for a mechanism whereby a country that has no representation in another country can ask a partner country to provide consular assistance to its citizens, including by visiting them in places of detention. According to him, Armenia approached partner countries, but the initiative was unsuccessful.

At the same time, Mirzoyan stressed that the issue of Armenians held in Azerbaijan remains a permanent item on the agenda. He said he did not consider it appropriate to make public all the steps taken.

“We have done things that I can talk about from this podium, and we have done things that I would not want to talk about from this podium, because I would have to name other countries and perhaps put them in a difficult position. I would not want to do that, as it would harm our international ties,” the minister said.

The sensitivity of the issue requires focusing attention on the outcome, he said.

“Why do I not like to keep saying this? Because it is such a sensitive issue that either there is a result or there is not,” Mirzoyan said.

MP Galstyan responded that she was not asking for the countries to be named, but rather for the international mechanisms used and the substance of the responses received to be presented. In this context, she referred to international conventions and mechanisms of the European Court of Human Rights.

“We have a path here, we are working in that direction, and that path goes directly through Azerbaijan,” Mirzoyan said.