Ruben Vardanyan Sentenced to 20 Years in Azerbaijani Military Court in Sham Trial

The Baku Military Court has sentenced former Artsakh State Minister and businessman Ruben Vardanyan to 20 years in prison, in a trial widely condemned as a sham judicial process targeting Armenians. Azerbaijani media reported the verdict, which came after a trial criticized for ignoring basic legal standards.

Azerbaijani state prosecutors had demanded life imprisonment for Vardanyan. Under Azerbaijani law, life imprisonment can be avoided for individuals over 65 years old. Vardanyan is 57. Media reports have not explained why the court rejected the prosecutor’s request for a life sentence.

Vardanyan was captured by Azerbaijani authorities in September 2023 in the Lachin corridor. Since his arrest, more than 40 charges have been brought against him, including financing terrorism, forming illegal armed groups, and illegally crossing the state border. His family and human rights groups say these charges are fabricated.

During the trial, Vardanyan delivered a final statement, denying all charges and describing the proceedings as politically motivated. Observers say the trial was part of a broader pattern in which Armenian military and political leaders are being judged not for any proven crimes but simply for being Armenian. International human rights organizations and Armenian officials have condemned the process and called for the immediate release of Armenian prisoners in Baku.

The sentence of Vardanyan follows similar verdicts. On February 5, former Artsakh presidents Arkadi Ghukasyan and Bako Sahakyan were sentenced to 20 years in prison. Other high-ranking Armenian officials, including former Artsakh president Arayik Harutyunyan, former Defense Army commander Levon Mnatsakanyan, former deputy commander David Manukyan, former Foreign Minister David Babayan, and former National Assembly president David Ishkhanyan, were sentenced to life imprisonment.

In a statement, Vardanyan’s family called the 20-year sentence shocking but unsurprising. They said the trial was predetermined and no evidence was ever presented to justify the charges.

“Ruben has been denied fundamental guarantees of a fair trial, including legal representation, access to an international lawyer, and the participation of independent media. Hearings were conducted behind closed doors and under conditions incompatible with international law, and even under Azerbaijani law, with the standards of a fair trial,” the statement read.

The family emphasized Vardanyan’s reputation as a humanitarian, philanthropist, and social entrepreneur. They said the trial was not only an attack on Ruben Vardanyan but an attack on the Armenian people as a whole, calling on international leaders to act to protect their rights and secure their release.

The sentencing of Ruben Vardanyan shows the ethnically motivated persecution of Armenian leaders in Azerbaijan, drawing strong criticism from human rights organizations and international observers for failing to meet basic standards of justice.

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