Armenian politician Mikael Nahapetyan has raised alarm over the status of former Artsakh State Minister Ruben Vardanyan and other Armenian leaders currently held in Azerbaijani prisons, stating their issue has been removed from all negotiation tables.
In a Facebook post, Nahapetyan wrote, “We’re pretending not to notice that Ruben’s and the others’ case has been pushed out of all tables and processes.”
Recalling their only meeting, Nahapetyan shared that on July 27, 2021, at 8 p.m., they sat on the balcony of Vardanyan’s home in Dilijan. “At that moment, Ruben still had a home, freedom, and the power of choice,” he noted.
“Since his capture in 2023, I often think of that encounter. In moments of difficulty, I recall those whose thresholds I’ve crossed. That simple meeting was followed by events that tested both our states and national morals,” he added.
He described it as tragic that despite Vardanyan’s current imprisonment in Baku and the absence of any rational sign pointing to a real release plan, society refuses to believe that Ruben took this path out of personal conviction and a will to bring change — not due to promises or safety assurances.
“People seem spellbound, unable to accept that someone among us might choose to assume a risky, uncertain, and ultimately hopeless responsibility instead of endlessly theorizing. They say he had interests and long-term plans — of course he did. Ruben was no Santa Claus, and certainly no fool,” he continued.
Nahapetyan argued that ambition is not shameful, citing figures like Vardan Mamikonian, Vazgen Sargsyan, Churchill, and Lee Kuan Yew — all ambitious leaders who shaped history. “What kind of pragmatism is it that scorns others for being pragmatic?” he asked.
He condemned the peace process’s omission of Armenian prisoners like Vardanyan, Vagif Khachatryan, and others, calling it hypocritical. “Negotiations, offers, concessions, mediators… But we act as if we don’t see that these people’s freedom is entirely absent from all tables and processes. Speaking about them is labeled a ‘threat to peace,’ as if peace means tolerating their daily humiliation on TV.”
He urged society to reflect on its moral compass. “Today we have homes, freedom, and choice. As we enjoy life’s comforts, we must decide who we are: people incapable of brotherly love and compassion, or people willing to act with determination. Do we choose the silent inertia of ‘Nikolism’?”
“I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again — the issue of the prisoners will only be resolved if it becomes a real political problem for Nikol, and Aliyev is forced to choose between keeping him or letting him fall,” he concluded.
In September 2023, following a nine-month blockade and ethnic cleansing in Artsakh, Azerbaijan captured former Presidents Arkadi Ghukasyan, Bako Sahakyan, and Arayik Harutyunyan, former State Minister Ruben Vardanyan, Foreign Minister Davit Babayan, and several other officials. Falsified charges could result in life sentences. The first court session in Baku was held on January 17.
In his January 16 message, Ruben Vardanyan stated that since his arrest, he has only given his name. He declared that all documents bearing his signature were falsified and confirmed that he, his lawyer, and interpreter had been pressured.
