YEREVAN (PanARMENIAN.Net) — Former Artsakh State Minister Ruben Vardanyan, currently facing trial in Baku, has accused the court of bias, arguing that the judges of the Baku military court are interested in his prosecution. He filed a complaint against the court’s composition, but his motion was rejected, according to Caucasian Knot, on February 11.
The February 10 hearing was presided over by Judge Zeynal Aghayev.
Vardanyan’s lawyer, Abraham Berman, petitioned the court to allow a private meeting with his client. The court granted this request. After the meeting, the hearing continued. The presiding judge announced the involvement of new translators, to which neither party objected, Minval.az reported.
Earlier, Siranush Sahakyan, a lawyer representing Armenian prisoners at the European Court of Human Rights, shared details of Vardanyan’s trial based on information provided by his local attorney. She revealed that, in addition to the case consisting of 422 volumes in Azerbaijani, Vardanyan’s assigned translator failed to provide adequate verbal translations and made serious mistakes. Written translations or even note-taking were not permitted.
In late December 2024, Vardanyan’s case was transferred to the Baku Military Court. He claimed that Azerbaijani investigators had falsified interrogation records and demanded an open trial with international journalists and humanitarian organizations present.
Vardanyan’s case is being considered separately. He faces around 45 new charges under 20 articles of Azerbaijan’s Criminal Code, with a potential sentence of life imprisonment. On January 27, the court denied his request for house arrest.
