Prosecution Overlooks Core Criminal Law Principles—Again
As reported by the only news source of the “trials” of Armenian hostages in Baku, the Azerbaijan state news agency, Azertac, during the 10 June 2025 “open court session” of former Artsakh state minister Ruben Vardanyan’s “trial”, the defendant “submitted another motion to the court regarding the presentation of a copy of the indictment to his family members and requested that the motions he had made in previous sessions be considered. Ruben Vardanyan’s lawyer, Avraam Berman, also defended his position. Judge Zeynal Agayev stated that the motions currently submitted to the court had already been considered in previous sessions and relevant decisions had been made, so they would not be discussed this time.
“After that, the defendant Ruben Vardanyan again appealed to the court and submitted another motion for an expert examination to verify the conformity of the Russian translation of the indictment in the criminal case in which he was accused with the Azerbaijani language version. Nasir Bayramov, head of the department of the State Prosecution Protection Department of the Prosecutor General’s Office, said that the defendant repeatedly applies with the same content in the motion. Therefore, the motion should not be the subject of discussion. Then the court retired to the deliberation room to make a decision. According to the decision made as a result of the deliberation, the motion was not granted.”
“After that, the victims testified in court.” Consistent with prior proceedings, the sole media outlet covering these cases, the Azerbaijan state news agency, Azertac, reports only the statements made by the victims or their legal heirs concerning alleged incidents1. Notably, these testimonies are not accompanied by specific dates, nor do the Azertac reports indicate that such information is solicited.
Social entrepreneur, philanthropist, and co-founder of the Aurora Humanitarian Initiative, Vardanyan served as former State (Prime) Minister of the Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) Republic from 4 November 2022 to 23 February 2023, after he moved there in September 2022. During that time, Nagorno-Karabakh was brought under a full blockade by Azerbaijan, and there were no clashes. Hence, none of the alleged incidents could have happened when he was in office. As Siranush Sahakyan, Legal Representative of Armenian Prisoners’ Interests at the European Court of Human Rights, asserts: “Azerbaijan has failed to point to specific actions that Vardanyan allegedly committed, actions that could potentially constitute criminal offenses. For instance, they cannot demonstrate that he issued illegal orders at a particular time and place, or that his involvement led to the loss of life. No such specific acts have been identified.”
Lawyers, including Vardanyan’s Azerbaijani lawyer, Avraam Berman, have criticized these trials because “the materials presented by the prosecution reveal a number of significant legal issues,” including violating the “principle of individual responsibility for specific actions. According to Article 7 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Azerbaijan, only a person who is found guilty of committing a crime may be held criminally liable. Any accusation must be based on the establishment of a direct causal link between the actions of a specific individual and the alleged criminal acts.
- “killed by gunfire opened by the enemy in the Kalbajar region”, “killed as a result of enemy sabotage”, “injured by the explosion of a mortar shell fired by remnants of the Armenian army and illegal Armenian armed groups”, “injured by the explosion of an “F1” hand grenade thrown at them”, “suffered a gunshot wound during an attack by remnants of the Armenian army and illegal Armenian armed groups in the Khojaly area”, “sustained shrapnel wounds due to the explosion of a grenade launched by the enemy in the Khojaly direction”, “was injured in the right side of his chest as a result of the explosion of a shell fired by remnants of the Armenian army and illegal Armenian armed groups in the Khojavand region”, “was wounded in the left shoulder by a sniper bullet fired by the enemy”, “remnants of the Armenian army and illegal armed groups dropped a grenade on their location using a drone”, “were injured in Aghdam due to the explosion of a mortar shell fired by remnants of the Armenian army and illegal Armenian armed groups”, “were injured in Kalbajar as a result of gunfire from Armenian military forces”, “was shot and wounded as a result of enemy fire in the Aghdara direction”, “sustained shrapnel injuries when an artillery shell exploded nearby while he was in Aghdara”, “was injured in Aghdam by the explosion of a mortar shell fired by remnants of the Armenian army and illegal Armenian armed groups”, “was injured in Khankendi as a result of the explosion of an improvised explosive device placed on a drone by the enemy”, “was wounded due to the explosion of an artillery shell”, “injured in Kalbajar by the explosion of a mortar shell”, “were injured in Aghdam as a result of the explosion of a mortar shell fired by remnants of the Armenian army and illegal Armenian armed groups”, “were wounded when a mortar shell fired by the enemy exploded” ↩︎