Baku Turns Artsakh Identity Into a Weapon: Former President Faces Political Show Trial

The Baku Military Court has turned the passport and birth certificate of former Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) President Arayik Harutyunyan into a political weapon. Instead of holding a fair and transparent trial, Azerbaijani authorities are using this court session to question not only Harutyunyan’s identity but the very existence of Artsakh as part of the Armenian world.

According to reports from Azerbaijan’s state-controlled media, AzerTac, the prosecutor questioned Harutyunyan about why his documents list different birthplaces — one naming Stepanakert in the Azerbaijan SSR, and another identifying Armenia as his birthplace. The prosecutor cynically asked whether this “meant Armenia considered Karabakh its territory.” Such a question reveals the true intent of the trial — not justice, but the political denial of Artsakh’s Armenian roots.

Harutyunyan, who has been held as a political prisoner in Baku for over two years, explained that the only difference between Artsakh and Armenian passports was the 070 code, which had been used to prevent Artsakh residents from voting in Armenian elections. Even with this code, the passports allowed Artsakh Armenians to travel abroad as Armenian citizens — a clear sign of their belonging to the Armenian nation.

This entire process is part of Azerbaijan’s campaign to erase the identity of Artsakh and its people. By placing Harutyunyan on trial and dissecting his documents, Azerbaijan is trying to rewrite history — pretending that Artsakh was never Armenian and that its leaders have no legitimate claim to represent their people.

The court also reviewed a video of an awards ceremony held by Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan in Sardarapat in 2020, where Armenian soldiers were honored after repelling an Azerbaijani attack in Tavush. Even this was twisted into an accusation. The Azerbaijani prosecutor asked why Harutyunyan was present, attempting to fabricate links between the Tavush border clashes and Artsakh’s leadership. In reality, Artsakh officials were often invited to national ceremonies — a normal reflection of unity between Armenia and Artsakh.

By demanding explanations about joint meetings of Armenia’s and Artsakh’s Security Councils before the Tavush battles, Baku’s prosecutors are trying to construct a false narrative — one that ties Artsakh to every Armenian act of defense. Their questions show Azerbaijan’s long-standing goal: to criminalize Armenian self-defense and label every Armenian leader a “terrorist” or “criminal” for simply existing.

Azerbaijan has charged Harutyunyan and other former Artsakh officials with absurd accusations such as “waging war,” “genocide,” and “terrorism.” These charges are politically motivated and serve to justify Azerbaijan’s campaign of aggression and ethnic cleansing. They also aim to intimidate any future Artsakh or Armenian figure who might speak for the rights of the displaced Artsakh population.

Meanwhile, the humanitarian situation remains dire. Since Azerbaijan forced the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to close its office in the country in September, at least 23 Armenian prisoners have been held in complete isolation. Their families have no information about their health or detention conditions. This inhumane treatment continues the same pattern of cruelty that Azerbaijan demonstrated during and after the 2020 war — where Armenian prisoners of war were tortured, humiliated, and used for political propaganda.

Arayik Harutyunyan’s trial is not a legal process; it is a political show aimed at denying the Armenian identity of Artsakh. Azerbaijan is using the courtroom to rewrite geography and history, to erase Stepanakert from Armenian memory, and to humiliate a nation that fought to live freely on its ancestral land.

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