ArmInfo."We strongly condemn the arrests by Azerbaijan of the leaders of Nagorno-Karabakh Arkadi Ghukasyan, Bako Sahakyan, Arayik Harutyunyan, Davit Ishkhanyan, Ruben Vardanyan and others." This is stated in a statement by the Armenian Foreign Ministry.
As the press service of Armenia's Foreign Office reports, the statement emphasizes that "Despite the dialogue with the representatives of Nagorno-Karabakh, the statements of high-ranking officials of Azerbaijan regarding the willingness to respect and protect the rights of Armenians, not to hinder their return to Nagorno-Karabakh, and on establishment of peace in the region, the law enforcement bodies of Azerbaijan continue arbitrary arrests.
The Republic of Armenia has repeatedly voiced, including at the UN General Assembly on September 23, the need to guarantee excluding such actions. On September 28, the Republic of Armenia has already appealed to the International Court of Justice to apply an interim measure in the case of Armenia against Azerbaijan under the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD), demanding from Azerbaijan to refrain from punitive actions against the current or former leadership or the military of Nagorno Karabakh.
The Republic of Armenia will take all possible steps to protect the rights of illegally detained representatives of Nagorno-Karabakh, including in international courts. We also call on international partners to be consistent in all their messages and appeals addressed to Azerbaijan on the protection of the rights and security of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh and to address the issue both on a bilateral level with Azerbaijan and on various international platforms," the RA Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement.
Azerbaijan officially confirmed the fact of the arrest of former Minister of State of Artsakh Ruben Vardanyan, former deputy commander of the Armed Forces of Artsakh, General David Manukyan, former commander of the Artsakh Autonomous Region, General Levon Mnatsakanyan, former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Artsakh David Babayan, former President of the Republic of Artsakh Bako Sahakyan (2007 -2020), former President of the Republic of Artsakh Arkady Ghukasyan (1997-2007), President of the National Assembly of Artsakh David Ishkhanyan, former President of the Republic of Artsakh (2020-2023), former Minister of State (2007-2018) Arayik Harutyunyan.