Humanitarian aspects of Karabakh war discussed with Council of Europe’s human rights chief in St. Petersburg

As part of the Conference of Heads of Prosecutor’s Offices of European States, Prosecutor General Artur Davtyan met with Christos Giakoumopoulos, the chief of the Council of Europe’s Directorate General on Human Rights and Rule of Law in St. Petersburg, Russia, to discuss bilateral cooperation affairs and the humanitarian aftermaths of last year’s war against Nagorno-Karabakh.

The sides highly appreciated the quality of the developing relations, attaching value to the cooperation in the fight against crimes (involving the Prosecutor General’s Office of Armenia as part of different CoE programs).

The humanitarian aspects of the Karabakh war were thoroughly considered particularly from the perspective of the reported violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms.

Davtyan briefed the European colleague on Azerbaijan’s total abuses against Armenian servicemen, prisoners of war (POWs) and civilians in the regions that passed under that country’s control under the November 10 ceasefire. Evaluating the actions as unacceptable in relation to any member state, Davtyan stressed the importance of an appropriate international reaction, particularly by the CoE human rights bodies.

The prosecutor general said that a full implementation of Clause 8 of the document, as well as a comprehensive and sincere solution to the humanitarian concerns would contribute to regional peace, creating guarantees of economic and other forms of cooperation.

As a flagrant example of Baku’s non-constructivism, Davtyan cited the prosecution of Armenian POWs by the Azerbaijani law enforcement authorities. Armenia’s top prosecutor said that the entire proceeding (involving the staged trials) are accompanied by numerous violations of the rights guaranteed under the European Convention on Human Rights.

Davtyan also elaborated on the acts of vandalism against the Armenian historical-cultural heritage in the occupied regions, noting that the reported crimes are perpetrated intentionally against the background of ethnic hatred.

The sides mutually expressed a willingness to promote a regular exchange of information on the subject matter.