U.S. official stresses need for finalizing peace deal, freeing prisoners

PanARMENIAN.Net - The ruling Civil Contract party has positively assessed the statement by U.S. National Security Advisor Mike Waltz, which emphasizes the need to finalize a peace treaty and release prisoners.

Arsen Torosyan, a member of the party’s board and a lawmaker, noted that Waltz voiced the same concerns as the Armenian authorities, RFE/RL reports.

"I highly appreciate—and we highly appreciate—that Mike Waltz specifically mentioned the release of prisoners. He stated that the peace agreement must first be finalized, prisoners must be released, and we must work together to create a safer and more prosperous region. I am quoting Mike Waltz’s words. This is precisely what we have been saying. I firmly believe, as does our government, that the key to bringing our compatriots home lies in signing and implementing a peace treaty," Torosyan emphasized.

The previous day, Waltz posted on X that the conflict in the South Caucasus must end. He mentioned meeting in Baku with Azerbaijan’s National Security Advisor Hikmet Hajiyev to discuss the peace process in the region.

Waltz highlighted the progress made on the peace agreement’s text, stating: "I told him that now we must finalize this peace deal, release the prisoners, and work together to make the region safer and more prosperous."

Meanwhile, Ruben Vardanyan’s lawyer, Jared Genser, has urged Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan to carefully review statements made by former U.S. President Donald Trump and National Security Advisor Mike Waltz. Currently, 23 Armenians remain in Azerbaijani prisons, 16 of whom were captured during Azerbaijan’s military assault on September 19, 2023.