In a statement Armenia’s Ministry of Defense said today that Azerbaijan handed over to the Armenian side two captives identified as 28-year-old Aren Aramian and 21-year-old Mihran Musayelian.
Earlier, the handover was reported by Azerbaijan’s State Commission on Captives and Missing Persons. It said that Aramian is a serviceman who was taken prisoner during November 16 clashes along the Armenian-Azerbaijani border, while Musayelian is a civilian who had strayed into territory controlled by Azerbaijani soldiers.
The Azerbaijani agency said Aramian had received treatment in Baku. It did not elaborate.
On November 23, ethnic Armenian authorities in Nagorno-Karabakh reported that a resident of the village of Ashan in the region’s Martuni district had lost his way and strayed into Azerbaijani-controlled territory.
Neither Azerbaijan, nor Armenia have officially tied the handover of captives to the talks between their leaders in Russia.
During an online press conference on Tuesday Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian said that as many as 32 Armenian soldiers may have been taken prisoner by Azerbaijan as a result of the recent border fighting in which at least seven Azerbaijani and six Armenian soldiers were killed.
Over a hundred Armenian POWs and other detainees have been repatriated from Azerbaijan since the end of hostilities in and around Nagorno-Karabakh in November 2020.
Scores, however, continue to be held by Azerbaijan despite a ceasefire provision calling for the return of all captives and hostages.
Baku acknowledges that it continues to hold up to 40 Armenians that it says are being prosecuted for different alleged crimes against Azerbaijan.