On February 17, a court in Azerbaijan delivered a verdict against billionaire Ruben Vardanyan, the former state minister of the separatist Karabakh entity, who had been held in detention.
The verdict was read at a session of the Baku Military Court presided over by Judge Zeynal Aghayev, with a panel consisting of Jamal Ramazanov and Anar Rzayev (reserve judge Gunel Samedova).
During the hearing, the defendant was provided with a Russian-language interpreter and a state-appointed lawyer.
Present at the trial were the defendant, his defense attorney, some of the victims and the legal heirs of the victims along with their representatives, the prosecutors representing the state, as well as Rufat Mammadov, head of the Cabinet of Ministers’ Office, participated on behalf of the Azerbaijani state as a victim.
Ruben Vardanyan has been prosecuted under the Azerbaijani Criminal Code on numerous charges, including planning and waging aggressive war, deportation, torture, terrorism, financing terrorism, forming illegal armed groups, and illegal crossing of the state border.
In his speech, the prosecutor had requested a life sentence for Vardanyan. However, the court sentenced him to 20 years in prison.
Vardanyan’s family released a statement reacting to the verdict. They said that his 20-year sentence was “devastating but not unexpected” for them, and that from the first day of his detention they believed the outcome of the process had been predetermined. The statement alleges that Vardanyan was deprived of fair trial guarantees, including full communication with lawyers and the participation of independent media. The family called on the international community to take steps to secure the release of Armenian prisoners whom they say are being held for political reasons.
On February 5, the Baku Military Court had also announced verdicts against former leaders of the separatist entity that operated in Karabakh and other defendants tried alongside them.
By court decision, former president Arayik Harutyunyan was sentenced to life imprisonment. Former defense minister Levon Mnatsakanyan, parliament speaker Davit Ishkhanyan, foreign minister David Babayan, and deputy defense minister David Manukyan were also sentenced to life imprisonment.
For former leaders Arkadi Ghukasyan and Bako Sahakyan, the court imposed 20-year sentences instead of life imprisonment, taking their age into account. Other defendants received prison sentences ranging from 15 to 19 years.
The conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia began in the late 1980s. During the collapse of the USSR, Karabakh and seven surrounding districts came under the control of Armenian armed forces.
After the 1994 ceasefire, a de facto unrecognized separatist administration was established in the region. As a result of the 44-day war in 2020, Azerbaijan regained control over a large portion of its previously occupied territories.
Following one-day military operations in September 2023, Armenian armed forces in Karabakh were disarmed and Baku declared full sovereignty over the region. After those operations, former separatist leaders were detained, brought to Baku, and put on trial.
On August 8, 2025, after many years of conflict, Azerbaijani and Armenian officials initialed the text of a peace agreement in Washington.
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