On March 6, 2025, several Azerbaijani media outlets circulated reports claiming that members of the Saeima (Parliament) of the Republic of Latvia had issued a statement in February regarding individuals captured as a result of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, including political and military prisoners such as Ruben Vardanyan — a citizen of the Republic of Armenia, businessman, and former State Minister of Artsakh.
According to those sources, the Latvian MPs allegedly portrayed Vardanyan as an “international threat,” a “Putin ally,” and called for harsh punishment, stressing what they claimed was “international condemnation.”
See Photo 1.
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Given that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia issued no official response to these claims — despite the extreme importance of the matter, particularly concerning prisoners of war — I, as a Member of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia and a member of the Armenia–Latvia Parliamentary Friendship Group, decided to personally verify the accuracy of the information presented.
See Photos 2, 3, 4.
I contacted several Latvian MPs whose names appeared in the reports, and I received clear responses categorically refuting the claims published in Azerbaijani media.
Latvian MP Edgars Tavars, in a written reply to me, confirmed that there was no such statement or document in existence.
See Photo 5.
Furthermore, Gunārs Kūtris, head of the Latvian parliamentary group for promoting cooperation with Armenia, officially stated:
“I inform you that no such signatures or letter were made. It is fake news, and an investigation has been launched regarding this matter. On behalf of the group for promoting cooperation with the Armenian Parliament, I express regret over such a situation.”
See Photo 6.
The official clarifications received confirm that the so-called “statement” does not actually exist and is disinformation disseminated by the Azerbaijani side.
Notably, the alleged statement referred not only to Vardanyan but also to several Armenian prisoners of war, whose freedom and rights are among the highest constitutional responsibilities of our state. It is regrettable that Armenia’s foreign policy leadership not only failed to respond to this false narrative but also took no steps to present the truth and defend national dignity.
The issue of prisoners of war must not be abandoned in Armenia’s foreign policy agenda. It is precisely to fill this gap that I took the initiative to establish direct communication and obtain clarifications — acting solely on my own initiative.
This case once again demonstrates how Azerbaijan continues to weaponize disinformation and simulate fake international reactions to mislead the global community and impose its military-political agenda.
And it shows how Nikol Pashinyan’s administration has effectively removed the issue of Armenian captives from the foreign policy agenda. Just yesterday, Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan stated that the issue of prisoners was discussed around COP29 (a year ago) — with no result.
Chairperson of the Standing Committee on Protection of Human Rights and Public Affairs of the National Assembly of RA, whose powers have been illegally terminated, nonpartisan MP TAGUHI TOVMASYAN
