Azerbaijan hands over 2 Armenian detainees to Yerevan

ANKARA

Azerbaijan handed over two Armenian detainees to Yerevan, citing "principles of humanism," a state authority announced on Friday.

Arin Aramyan Jirayevich, 28, one of the Armenian citizens held by Baku, was detained wounded on Nov. 16 during military operations along the border, said Azerbaijan's State Commission on Prisoners of War, Hostages and Missing Persons.

While held by the Azerbaijani side, Aramyan was provided with necessary medical care and treatment.

The other was Mihran Musaelyan Ernest, 21, who was detained near Azerbaijan's Aghdam region.

Following an investigation, it was found out that Mihran is a civilian who got lost and entered the Azerbaijani territory guarded by the country's servicemen.

The move came before the Friday's trilateral meeting of Russia, Azerbaijan and Armenia in the Russian resort city of Sochi.

Relations between the former Soviet republics of Azerbaijan and Armenia have been tense since 1991 when the Armenian military occupied Nagorno-Karabakh, also known as Upper Karabakh, a territory internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan, and seven adjacent regions.

Clashes erupted on Sept. 27, 2020, and during the six-week war, Azerbaijan liberated several cities and nearly 300 settlements and villages.

The conflict ended in November 2020 in a Russia-brokered deal that saw Armenia cede swathes of territory it had occupied for nearly three decades.

In January, the leaders of the three countries agreed to develop economic ties and infrastructure for the benefit of the entire Caucasus region.