We will submit more detailed lawsuit to the ECHR with larger evidence base – Yeghishe Kirakosyan

Will Armenia apply again to the international court? Answering this question at today’s press conference, Yeghishe Kirakosyan, the representative of the Republic of Armenia at the ECHR and the International Court of Justice, said that it would not be correct to answer this question.

The UN International Court of Justice has partially upheld Armenia’s complaint against Azerbaijan for violating the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination. The demand of the Armenian side to apply an interim measure to return the Armenian captives held in Azerbaijan was rejected. The court partially upheld the similar lawsuit filed by Azerbaijan against Armenia.

“In the near future, we will submit a lawsuit in this case to the ECHR with a more detailed, in-depth legal analysis, with a large evidence base,” said Kirakosyan, assuring that the work in that direction has already begun.

He also said that the ECHR largely upheld the Armenia’s demands in terms of content. The International Court of Justice has satisfied the substantive demands presented by Armenia.

“It should be noted that the court made several important statements. It is true that the court did not claim that the repatriation requirement stems from the provisions of the Convention on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, but stressed that the repatriation of detainees is regulated in the context of humanitarian law. It is a well-known fact that there is a clear obligation under humanitarian law to return the captives,” Kirakosyan said. He added that, in addition, the court said that the attitude towards the captives was conditioned by their being Armenian.

“Based on this, the court obliged Azerbaijan to ensure that the captives are not subjected to degrading treatment of human dignity,” Kirakosyan said, noting that the court also urged Azerbaijan to refrain from spreading hate speech and inciting hatred against ethnic Armenians. Kirakosyan also said that it is crucial that the court emphasized that when hate speech is spread by a high-ranking official, it can have irreversible consequences. With this, the court obliged Azerbaijani officials not to make hate speeches.

“This is a great success, it proves the strength of the Armenia’s arguments. This can be crucial for the case in the future,” said Kirakosyan. He added that the court also ruled that the Armenian cultural heritage should be preserved and those who desecrate it should be held accountable.