“I regret that many, without waiting for our response and our accounts, had hurried to state on their social media that we had not raised the issue of the return of the captives, and criticized us for that. I regret it, but they were very hasty, because I say with full responsibility that we raised the issue even during the Azerbaijanis’ visit, as well as in front of Mr. Hajiyev. Moreover, neither from the Armenian side nor from the Azerbaijani side were any restrictions imposed on us preventing us from raising this issue,” she said, reminding that the issue is periodically raised in international platforms. This was stated by Naira Sultanyan, a representative of the Armenian delegation, during a press conference held after returning from Baku, noting at the same time that due to the absence of the Red Cross there had also been letters sent on this topic.
“Speaking directly about this issue with the Azerbaijani side was a new situation for us—especially sitting in front of Mr. Hajiyev. We tried to formulate our message diplomatically and substantiate it delicately so that, as a result, a sense of trust and mutual understanding would emerge between the parties, which we hope will lead to a faster resolution of these problems. I must say with regret that we did not receive a clear and concrete answer regarding the number, the people, the names, and so on,” said Naira Sultanyan, then adding: “We tried to place this within the logic of the peace process, so that it would be clear that we should resolve this issue and move forward.”
The Armenian delegation received a response that there is an active negotiation process behind these steps.
To the question of whether there had been a request to meet with Armenian captives, another representative of the Armenian delegation, Boris Navasardyan, clarified that meeting the captives was not a priority.
“The issue is being discussed, the issue may receive some kind of solution, but when, how, and what kind of solution it will be—we will probably see in the near future. There are certain details, and since they are not final, I would not want to speak about them.
But we must also understand one thing: just as there is an emotional attitude in our society regarding the issue of the captives, there is the same attitude in Azerbaijani society, as they consider the captives responsible for many things that are painful for Azerbaijani society, and even if that is not an objective perception, it affects the process. Work must be done in that direction. The adequate and appropriate work of the media is also important, and for that a fact-checking process is necessary, which we also agreed upon,” he said, noting that these facts may concern the role of these captives within the framework of the conflict, as there are many myths here.
“We understand very well that this is more of a political process than a legal one. If through fact-checking, the work of the media, and the work of civil society we can bring this as much as possible into the legal field and free it from political and emotional attitudes, then resolving the issue will become easier and more realistic,” Navasardyan said.
Another representative of the Armenian delegation, Areg Kochinyan, in turn stated: “I sincerely believe that our visit was a step forward toward resolving the issue of the captives.
Yes, at this moment we have no results to present to you, but I am deeply convinced that our visit was a step forward in this process and toward the successful completion of that process.”
