Armenian General Jailed in Azerbaijan Urges Pashinyan to Publicly Reject Baku’s 2020 War Claims

An Armenian general imprisoned in Azerbaijan has called on Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan to publicly reject Baku’s accusations that Armenia planned and waged an aggressive war in 2020.

Maj. Gen. Davit Manukyan made the appeal in a message sent from prison in Baku and obtained by Pastinfo. He said one of the charges against him centers on the planning, preparation and conduct of the September 2020 war.

At the time, Pashinyan was serving as Armenia’s prime minister and commander-in-chief. Manukyan said that makes the Armenian leader’s public position on the accusations especially important.

“I urge you to state your position specifically on these charges,” Manukyan said.

“Otherwise, your failure to respond will mean that you agree with the false accusations, making not only yourself but the entire Armenian people complicit.”

Manukyan also asked the Armenian government to clarify how it officially defines the status of the Armenians held in Azerbaijan. He said the prisoners “do not feel the presence of the Republic of Armenia.”

The former deputy commander of the Artsakh Defense Army rejected the charges against him as fabricated. He said he and the other Armenian prisoners continue to defend their rights in court, as well as the dignity of the Armenian people and Armenian statehood.

Azerbaijani forces detained Manukyan in 2023 following the military operation that forced the displacement of indigenous Artsakh’s Armenian population. A court in Baku sentenced him to life imprisonment in February 2026.

According to official figures, 19 Armenians remain imprisoned in Azerbaijan. They include former political and military leaders of Artsakh who received sentences ranging from 15 years to life in prison.

The Baku Court of Appeal is now reviewing challenges to those verdicts.

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