Ahead of a diplomatic visit to Armenia and Azerbaijan later this month, David Vardanyan, the son of imprisoned Armenian Christian Ruben Vardanyan, is calling on the Trump administration to seek the release of prisoners still in Azerbaijani custody following the mass exodus of Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh in September 2023, according to Catholic Vote, an advocacy organization for Catholics in America.
In an interview with Zeale News on February 4, David Vardanyan spoke about the arrest of his father, Ruben Vardanyan, a prominent Armenian philanthropist and former state minister of Nagorno-Karabakh.
Vardanyan stated that his father was arrested as part of a mass arrest that has resulted in the illegal detention of at least 22 Armenians following Azerbaijan’s military offensive in the region.
“This was a mass arrest that completed the ethnic cleansing that killed more than 120,000 Armenian Christians,” Vardanyan said.
He claimed that Azerbaijani forces had blockaded Nagorno-Karabakh for months, cutting off the only road connecting the world’s oldest Christian country to Armenia.
According to Vardanyan, Nagorno-Karabakh, also known as Artsakh, has been inhabited by Armenians for over 2,000 years and is one of the oldest Armenian settlements.
Vardanyan said his father moved to the region after the 2020 war between Armenia and Azerbaijan to support the local Christian population, which he believed had been “abandoned by the world.”
“He decided to give up his entire life and risk everything. He tried to protect them, to live with them in their darkest hour. And he is paying the price for his attempts to protect them peacefully,” said Ruben Vardanyan’s son.
Detention Conditions
Vardanyan called the approximately 40 charges against his father, including terrorism financing and illegal border crossing, fabricated and claimed the trials lack basic legal safeguards.
He said Azerbaijan is trying Ruben Vardanyan in a military tribunal, even though he never held a military position, in violation of international norms. “This is essentially a political show trial,” said the philanthropist’s son.
The family’s only contact now consists of short, strictly controlled phone calls. Furthermore, his father is being held in solitary confinement and subjected to abuse. Azerbaijan has not released a full list of those detained. Vardanyan said that with the release of four people, 19 prisoners are currently confirmed, but the total number could be higher due to missing prisoners of war.
Persecution of Christians in Azerbaijan
Vardanyan also stated that those detained face restrictions on practicing their Christian faith.
He said that during the first week of his father’s detention, attempts to send him a Bible and another fundamental text of Armenian Christianity were rejected, although authorities did allow several other books.
What’s next?
The renewed focus on prisoners of war comes amid Vance’s expected visit to Armenia and Azerbaijan as part of US diplomatic efforts related to President Donald Trump’s “Trump Roadmap for International Peace and Prosperity,” a regional transportation and economic initiative.
According to Vardanyan, the August event did not result in the signing of a peace treaty, but only the approval of a framework text, which, he said, makes no mention of Armenian prisoners. “You can’t hold Christians hostage in prison cells and expect the world to believe in real peace,” he said.
Vardanyan thanked Trump and the United States for prioritizing the protection of Christians worldwide, noting that Trump had previously addressed the fate of Armenian prisoners.
According to OC Media, in August, Trump told Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan of his intention to ask Azerbaijan to release the prisoners and expressed confidence that Baku would agree.
“This is a unique opportunity to once again show the world that the president and vice president mean what they say. Protecting Christians is a top priority for this administration, not only in the United States but around the world.”
He said that the vice president, who has publicly spoken about the global persecution of Christians, could help secure the release of the prisoners by directly reaching out to regional leaders.