Monday, February 8 2021 14:43

ArmInfo.Members of the inter-parliamentary group with Armenia in the Lithuanian Seim (parliament) adopted a statement in which they called on Azerbaijan  to speed up the exchange of bodies, prisoners of war and prisoners,  ensuring their early return to their homeland.

As reported by the Armenian Embassy in Lithuania, the statement reads  in particular: "We, members of the inter-parliamentary group with  Armenia in the Seim, relying on the statement of the EU High  Representative for Nagorno-Karabakh on November 19, 2020 on behalf of  the European Union; the commitment made by the leaders of Armenia and  Azerbaijan to exchange prisoners of war and other detainees on an  all-for-all basis at the end of 2020; the appeal of the press  secretary of the European Union External Relations Service dated  January 29, 2021; statement of  the Political Forum of the European  People's Party (EPP) of February 1, 2021; and taking into account the  8th paragraph of the statement of the leaders of Armenia, Azerbaijan  and Russia on the cessation of hostilities on November 10, 2020, we  urge Azerbaijan to speed up the exchange of bodies, prisoners of war  and hostages, immediately suspend the criminal case against them and  hand them over to Armenia.

The unconditional and immediate return of prisoners will be one of  the first steps towards restoring the atmosphere of trust between  Azerbaijan and Armenia.

We also call on the institutions of the European Union to  consistently raise this humanitarian issue in the context of current  and future relations with Azerbaijan, '' the Lithuanian MPs said in a  statement.  It should be noted that the exact number of Armenian  prisoners of war and prisoners of war who fell under the jurisdiction  of Azerbaijan is still not known. Baku confirmed that they have 62  two volunteers from Shirak region. However, according to experts, the  number of prisoners is much higher.