The Azerbaijani side said DNA profiles of 50 people submitted by Armenia in January 2026 did not match remains found in Nagorno-Karabakh. Ali Naghiyev, chairman of the State Commission on Prisoners of War, Missing Persons and Hostages and head of the State Security Service, made the statement at the fourth international conference held in Azerbaijan as part of the Baku Dialogue on Missing Persons.
Azerbaijan has proposed that the Armenian side provide relevant DNA samples to establish the identity of human remains found in territories that came under Azerbaijani control and believed to belong to Armenian servicemen, APA reports.
The commission chairman said examinations had established no matches between the DNA profiles of 50 reportedly missing people of Armenian origin submitted by Armenia in January 2026 and the remains that had been discovered.
Azerbaijani Deputy Foreign Minister Fariz Rzayev said Armenia should “provide all information in its possession concerning missing Azerbaijanis.”
He said records concerning captivity, movements and deaths, witness testimony, as well as information about individual or mass burial sites, are highly important for determining the fate of missing persons.
“Even incomplete information can be significant when examined alongside other evidence,” Fariz Rzayev said.
The deputy minister called on Armenia to provide all information that could “bring clarity regarding the fate and whereabouts of missing Azerbaijanis, including information on burial sites.”
He said that, as part of cooperation with the International Commission on Missing Persons, Azerbaijan’s state commission is working on the preliminary implementation of an Integrated Data Management System and a complementary online application center.
According to Fariz Rzayev, the system will make it possible to consolidate available information into a single database, allow authorized bodies to manage and cross-reference data, and provide information on missing persons and burial sites while maintaining confidentiality.
He said the system’s effectiveness would depend on the quality of the data entered into it and the willingness of all relevant parties to share information known to them.
The deputy minister said Article 9 of the agreement on the establishment of peace and interstate relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia addresses persons who went missing or were subjected to enforced disappearance during the conflict.
According to him, the document initialed in Washington provides for resolving these issues through the direct exchange of all available information or, where necessary, through cooperation with relevant international organizations.
“This provision creates a concrete basis for humanitarian cooperation. Regular contacts between the relevant state bodies and their Armenian counterparts should help ensure that information is used to conduct searches, establish identities and provide answers to families,” Fariz Rzayev said.
