Siranush Sahakyan, attorney and representative for Armenian prisoners at the European Court of Human Rights, said that an appeal by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan to U.S. President Donald Trump regarding Armenian captives held in Baku would have been a major diplomatic step, lending state-level gravity to the issue, Sputnik Armenia reports.
Earlier, the newspaper Hraparak reported that influential Armenian figures had contacted Trump’s son-in-law, engaging in negotiations.
According to the outlet, Trump signaled willingness to intervene if officially approached by Yerevan. The report noted that only a written request was needed to formalize U.S. involvement, but Pashinyan reportedly declined, arguing it could jeopardize the Armenia-Azerbaijan peace agreement. On July 16, Pashinyan deflected the question at a press conference, saying, “There is no negotiation where the captives issue is not duly raised.”
Regarding potential U.S. influence, Sahakyan noted that Trump could propose a deal or a pressure-based offer to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, which could yield results. She pointed to the return of 30 captives in 2023 as a positive precedent.
Sahakyan also did not rule out the potential roles of other geopolitical actors, including Russia and the European Union. However, given the current U.S. context, she views American involvement as realistic.
She stressed that Armenia must raise the captives’ issue not only bilaterally but also across international platforms, to increase pressure on Azerbaijan.
“For instance, in Armenian-American relations, Armenia should seek U.S. support for returning the captives. Within Armenia-EU cooperation, sanctions on Azerbaijan should be prioritized if captives are not released. Use of international criminal mechanisms should also be on the table, both to apply pressure and to generate consequences,” Sahakyan said.
She concluded that current Armenian efforts are not strategic or comprehensive but remain local and ceremonial in bilateral talks.
Finally, responding to Pashinyan’s claim that the issue is consistently raised in negotiations, Sahakyan stressed that treating captives’ return as a post-agreement outcome is wrong and unacceptable.
Humanitarian concerns, she argued, should be preconditions to any peace deal.
In September 2023, after a nine-month blockade and the ethnic cleansing of Artsakh’s Armenian population, Azerbaijan captured former Artsakh leaders, including Arkadi Ghukasyan, Bako Sahakyan, Arayik Harutyunyan, Ruben Vardanyan, Davit Babayan, and others. They face fabricated charges that may result in life sentences. On January 17, a staged trial began in Baku.
