The legal representative of Armenian prisoners at the ECHR, lawyer Siranush Sahakyan, has shared details about Ruben Vardanyan’s trial, based on information received from his lawyer, reports News.am .

“We have some alternative information about Ruben Vardanyan’s trial, which his family obtained through his lawyer, Abraham Berman. During the session, the defense filed two objections, one concerning the translator. Apart from the fact that this fabricated case comprises 422 volumes in Azerbaijani, it turned out that the assigned translator, who was supposed to provide at least an oral translation of the case materials (as written translation, even taking notes, is prohibited), failed to do so properly and made serious errors.

In some instances, references were made not to Azerbaijani but to Belarusian legislation. According to the information I received, the court ordered that Ruben Vardanyan and his defense be provided with an adequate translation. This decision came only during the third session, when the substantive examination of the case had already begun. Additionally, all defense motions to obtain copies of the case materials and access video recordings were denied. Naturally, Azerbaijani media do not report on this,” said Sahakyan.

Regarding the statements of Arayik Harutyunyan and Davit Babayan, Sahakyan noted that they were made under pressure.

“No international expert finds these testimonies credible,” she said.

Sahakyan pointed out that from the published sections of the indictment, it is clear that the overall goal of this trial is to discredit the principle of Artsakh’s right to self-determination and to undermine all efforts toward self-determination. The prosecution seeks to portray everything as “criminal activity aimed at territorial occupation.”

The indictments in the ongoing trials in Baku against Artsakh’s former political and military leadership, as well as Ruben Vardanyan in a separate proceeding, mention former Armenian presidents, officials, and even National Hero Monte Melkonian.