The French newspaper Le Parisien touched upon Ruben Vardanyan's false trial. "A man who needs to fail. Ruben Vardanyan states that a false trial in Azerbaijan states that 42 charges such as "Turbilities", such as "murder", have been sent to Vardanyan. An endless list that local media repeats again and again. For these alleged crimes, the Armenian billionaire faces up to 200 years in prison.
The article writer notes that a bright future was expected to be a successful businessman, but in 2020 everything changed. Azerbaijan is again inflaming the fire of the eternal conflict to capture Nagorno-Karabakh.
"This war was the red line for him. Seeing the abandoned Armenians from all over the world was unbearable, "says his son David Vardanyan. At that time, Ruben Vardanyan seems to have a mission to carry out. No more, no less, return to the region. In September 2022, he settled there. David mentions their last conversation a few weeks before the movement of Nagorno Karabakh. "I was against his decision. I was afraid that he did not return alive from there. " Persistent businessman's program worked for some time. For some short time until February 2023, he held the post of Public Minister of Nagorno Karabakh, established public canteens to provide food for locals.
However, in September, the region explodes again. Azerbaijan has a lightning attack, which represents a "anti-terrorist act." As a result, 400 casualties, and the Armenians living there, 120,000 people are fleeing from Artsakh. Ruben Vardanyan was arrested on September 27 during his attempt to cross the border. Hands are chains, surrounded by two soldiers. The photos of his arrest were spread all over the world.
This is followed by the grotesque legal struggle. In prison, he is subjected to torture. In April 2024, after a two-week hunger strike, his relatives are deprived of his ability to contact him. To punish him, the authorities keep him in the disciplinary cell for 23 days. "He could hardly sit down, deprived of water and food, and the lights kept 24 hours a day," his international lawyer Jared Genser said. From the first day of his court hearings, the Human Rights Specialist condemns the "demonstration trial." The 25,000-page criminal case is entirely written in Azerbaijani, which is not accused Vardanyan.
Azerbaijani media call him a "military criminal". Another nonsense. After fifty years, the man stands before the military court, although he has never suffered a military uniform. "It is a crucial violation of the European Convention on Human Rights," the lawyer said, who lacked direct contact with his client. "I think he will get a long-term punishment, maybe even life imprisonment," Genser said. This is exactly the fate of Ruben Vardanyan, the local media, who are happy to call him a "military criminal."
By staging this false trial, the authorities seem to be determined to provide a strategist for them. "Ruben Vardanyan is the man who is most afraid of the regime, he needs to fail. Ilham Aliyev needs this historical trial to turn to the Nagorno Karabakh page, "Tigran Yegavyan, a professor at the Shiller International University, explained by Tigran Yegavyan.
On January 16, Ruben Vardanyan sent a letter to the conditions of his trial. He details that he feels "neither anger nor hatred" by declaring: "I am convinced that the truth will win."
