Vahagn Aleksanyan, a member of Armenia’s National Assembly from the ruling Civil Contract parliamentary faction, said the return of Armenian prisoners held in Azerbaijan is a separate matter for discussion from the process of establishing peace, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s Armenian Service (Azatutyun) reports.
“I believe the issue of prisoners and detainees should be resolved even before that. We will try to do everything possible to ensure that the issue is resolved beforehand,” the lawmaker said.
There are currently 19 Armenian prisoners held in Azerbaijani prisons. They have received prison sentences ranging from 15 years to life imprisonment. The trials conducted in Azerbaijan are taking place behind closed doors, without the presence of international observers or media representatives.
