ArmInfo. The issue related to the Armenian prisoner of war Araik Ghazaryan is in the center of our attention. Armenian Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan stated this at a press conference in Yerevan on September 6.
The Armenian minister emphasized that this is a complex and emotional issue that is always in the spotlight. Mnatsakanyan added that the Armenian side is working closely with the International Committee of the Red Cross and other involved parties to resolve it as soon as possible. "It's hard for me to say this, but, unfortunately, so far our many efforts have not produced the expected result. However, we are not sparing efforts and work in this direction continues," Mnatsakanyan summed up.
To note, on August 13 it became known that on August 12 at about 12:00, soldier Araik Ghazaryan born in 2000 left the position on the defensive site of one of the military units of the Armed Forces, deployed in the southeastern direction of the Karabakh-Azerbaijan line of contact of the troops. Later, the Azerbaijani media reported with reference to the military department of Azerbaijan that the soldier is on their territory. Armenian Minister of Defense David Tonoyan expressed confidence that the serviceman was on the Azerbaijani side, as he got lost on the ground. A week later, representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross were able to visit a prisoner of war and get acquainted with the conditions of his detention. Three Armenian civilians are officially on the Azerbaijani side, who, on far-fetched charges, were sentenced to various prison terms in Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan is ready to return Armenian prisoners in exchange for two Azerbaijani saboteurs convicted by a court of Nagorno-Karabakh to life imprisonment for murders with particular cruelty.