BOSTON (Panarmenian.am) — The co-founder of the Aurora humanitarian initiative and chairman of Moderna, Noubar Afeyan, stated in an interview with CNN on March 17 that any peace agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan must include the release of prisoners.
He added that if a peace agreement does not provide for the release of detainees, it will have no real value.
Afeyan emphasized the importance of understanding the full context of events. He pointed out that Azerbaijan launched an attack on a region that had been an independent republic for nearly 30 years, populated exclusively by Armenians who had lived there in their historical homeland, according to the Free Armenian Prisoners team.
“Following a year-long blockade, the attack led to the displacement of 120,000 Armenians, which numerous experts have classified as ethnic cleansing. Among those displaced was Ruben Vardanyan, who was engaged in humanitarian efforts in Nagorno-Karabakh and served as state minister for three months.”
The accusations against Vardanyan, following a year of delays and extended detention, cover numerous aspects. In fact, there are 42 charges, many of which relate to the period before he even moved to Karabakh, dating back to the late 1980s when he was a student in Moscow. This, Afeyan stated, is an attempt at a sham trial, throwing every possible charge against him. The criminal case against him consists of 250,000 pages, written in Azeri, a language he does not understand, and without translation.
“Essentially, he is being accused of charges he cannot comprehend, with evidence entirely controlled by the state,” he said.
