Work continues to release hostages in Armenian captivity

Eldar Samadov, deputy head of the working group of the State Commission, told Trend on February 13 that the state agency holds regular meetings and discussions with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).

“Issues related to Dilgam Asgarov and Shahbaz Guliyev, taken hostage by Armenian servicemen in July 2014 in Azerbaijan’s Kalbajar region occupied by Armenia, are discussed during these meetings,” he said. Samadov added that the issue of releasing Azerbaijani citizen Elnur Huseynzade, taken hostage by Armenian servicemen on the contact line of troops near Talish village of Azerbaijan’s Tartar region on February 1, 2017 under unknown circumstances is also discussed at the meetings.

For more than three years, Asgarov and Guliyev have been kept hostage by Armenian militaries in the occupied Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan. They were detained while visiting their native places and graves of loved ones in the occupied Azerbaijani Kalbajar region. Moreover, Armenian armed forces killed the third Azerbaijani Hasan Hasanov. Later, Guliyev and Asgarov were judged illegally by the unrecognized courts of the separatist regime in the occupied Nagorno-Karabakh. Following an expedited “judicial process” in December 2015, Asgarov was sentenced to life imprisonment and Guliyev – to 22 years in prison.

Samadov said that the issue related to Armenian serviceman Arsen Baghdasaryan and Armenian citizen Zaver Karapetyan are also discussed.

Baghdasaryan was detained while making attempted sabotage on the contact line of troops in Azerbaijan’s Aghdam region on December 26, 2014. By the verdict of the Ganja Grave Crimes Court, he was sentenced to 15 years of imprisonment.

As for Karapetyan, he was detained on June 20, 2017, in an attempt of the reconnaissance and sabotage group of Armenian armed forces to violate the defense line of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces. He admitted that he had been paid for combat duty.

Samadov noted that the issue of releasing Dilgam Asgarov and Shahbaz Guliyev was raised at all meetings with international organizations.

“During the meeting held upon Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev’s instructions with the ICRC President Peter Maurer in Geneva in December 2015, Azerbaijani Deputy Prime Minister Ali Hasanov asked to help Asgarov and Guliyev to communicate with family members by using modern communication devices,” deputy head of the working group said.

This issue was thoroughly discussed during the meeting with the ICRC representatives in November 2016, and a mutual agreement was reached to create the same conditions for Baghdasaryan, detained in Azerbaijan, Samadov added.

“On the mutual agreement in February 2017, the video messages of Asgarov, Guliyev and Baghdasaryan were handed over to their families, and those of the families were sent to the places of their detention,” he said, adding that this is the first such case in the history of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Samadov also said that as of December 1, 2017, the State Commission registered 1,443 people who were released from captivity and hostage during the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

He noted that last year inquiries were sent to some regions to clarify information on persons released from captivity and hostage during the conflict. The responses were analyzed and the data was included into the relevant databases.

“As a result of the investigation, it was revealed that six Azerbaijani citizens were held hostage and released during intensive military operations,” Samadov added.

Azerbaijan has repeatedly declared its readiness to begin negotiations with Armenia to free the captives and resolve the long-standing Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. However, the Armenian side keeps ignoring all attempts of Azerbaijan and international organizations, thereby disrespecting the international law and hindering the settlement of the conflict.

The expansion is planned for the near future. However, experts argue about its benefits and influence on the process of the NagornoKarabakh conflict settlement.

“There will be no impact,” Russian expert Georgy Fyodorov, President of the Aspect Center for Social and Political Studies, told Azernews on February 12. “OSCE actually acts as a monitoring service in the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and does not have a real influence on the settlement process.”

He added that the issue of Kasprzyk’s office expansion indirectly relates to the negotiation process and is more of organizational nature.

As for the negotiations themselves, it was agreed during the last visit of the MG co-chairs in the region that intensive negotiations will be held after the presidential elections in Armenia and Azerbaijan in March and April respectively.

“We should not expect any major progress in the settlement of the conflict during the elections, since any concessions will allow some forces within Azerbaijan and Armenia to play against candidates from the authorities,” Fyodorov noted in this regard.

Russian political analyst and expert on international issues Evgeny Mikhailov also believes that Kasprzyk's office expansion will not lead to a serious intensification in the settlement process.

“This is not so much an important step, but rather an additional political decision of the interested parties to create the appearance of a desire to alleviate the tension,” the expert said. Mikhailov noted that it is necessary to find some other tools that could lead to a real change in the situation on the frontline.

The expert added that after the presidential elections in Azerbaijan and Armenia, the political conjuncture may change both for the better and for the worse.

“I expect a sharp increase in pressure on Armenia from its main security guarantor Russia with a view to the possible returning of the occupied regions in the buffer zone to Azerbaijan,” the expert added.

He said the return of these occupied territories surrounding the Nagorno-Karabakh region is quite possible in the near future, since this issue was recently discussed in a positive manner but then was suspended.

“For Armenia, this step would not become a kind of defeat in the negotiation process, since these territories have never been disputed regarding their historical belonging. After that, it will be possible to work towards the return of NagornoKarabakh itself to Azerbaijan,” Mikhailov concluded.

This scenario is described in the Madrid Principles proposed to Azerbaijan and Armenia by the OSCE Minsk Group back in 2007. The principles stipulate a gradual settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. In particular, they envisage the withdrawal of Armenian troops from the occupied areas adjacent to the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan, provision of an interim status for the region and future determination of its final legal status. Moreover, all internally displaced persons and refugees, who account for more than a million of Azerbaijan’s population, should return to their former places of residence, according to the Madrid Principles.