The release of the 15 Armenian prisoners would be another important step towards achieving lasting peace in the South Caucasus, according to a joint
statement by the members of the European Parliament (MEPs).
“On Thursday 5 February, the Baku Military Court handed down long prison sentences to 15 Armenian defendants, out of the 19 Armenian detainees still held in Azerbaijan and arrested in the context of the former Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. We deeply regret this ruling, which includes five life imprisonment sentences,” the statement by the MEPs says.
As the statement emphasizes, last year the Azerbaijani leadership “took significant steps towards peace and reconciliation with Armenia” by “signing the Washington Declaration, initialling the text of the peace agreement, and allowing - for the first time in decades - the transit of cargo from its territory into Armenia. In January 2026, it released four Armenians serving prison sentences in Azerbaijan after being arrested in 2020 and 2023.”
“Only last week, the President of Azerbaijan, together with the Prime Minister of Armenia, were awarded the 2026 Zayed Award for Human Fraternity 'in recognition of their consistent efforts to promote peace'. In this spirit, we appeal on the Azerbaijani authorities to build further on the current positive momentum and release all Armenian detainees in Azerbaijan's custody. Their release would represent a significant goodwill gesture and another major step towards lasting peace in the South Caucasus,” the MEPs added in their statement.
