Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 26

Trend:

Armenian prisoner of war, soldier Arsen Baghdasaryan, has sent an appeal to acting Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan for releasing prisoners of war and hostages upon "all to all" principle, the Azerbaijani State Commission for Prisoners of War, Hostages and Missing People said in a message on Nov. 26.

Baghdasaryan was detained in Azerbaijan’s Aghdam district while trying to make a provocation on the contact line of Azerbaijani and Armenian troops, and was sentenced by Ganja Heinous Crimes Court to 15 years in prison.

Baghdasaryan asked the Azerbaijani State Commission for Prisoners of War, Hostages and Missing People to make his appeal public.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.