Aliyev insists all Armenians taken prisoner during war have been returned
Speaking about prisoners of war in an interview with France 24, Azerbaijani President Aliyev said all those taken as prisoners during the 44-day war in 2020 have been returned to Armenia.
“The Armenian government can confirm that. We returned them even before they returned our prisoners of war. Those people whom some NGOs are referring to are those who were sent by the Armenian military command two weeks after the war ended,” Aliyev said.
He noted that those who are currently held in Azerbaijan, according to all international conventions cannot be considered as prisoners of war, as they have been detained after the war stopped.
Aliyev underlined that many of them had already been returned to Armenia as a sign of goodwill.
“But the rest of those people who are serving the sentence here, they have committed a crime and they must be brought to justice and they have been brought to justice,” he said.