Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan met with UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk during the UN Human Rights Council session, highlighting the urgency of addressing the release of Armenian prisoners of war (POWs) and civilians held hostage in Azerbaijan.

Mirzoyan outlined Armenia’s approach to normalizing relations with Azerbaijan, presenting constructive proposals on various aspects of the process.

The minister emphasized that findings from two UN missions dispatched to Armenia last year could be crucial in documenting the situation of ethnically cleansed Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh.

During the meeting, the sides discussed global human rights challenges, regional developments, and cooperation between Armenia and the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.

Mirzoyan and Türk also exchanged views on the security situation in the South Caucasus.

In September 2023, after a nine-month blockade and the ethnic cleansing of the Armenian population of Artsakh, Azerbaijan captured former Artsakh Presidents Arkadi Ghukasyan, Bako Sahakyan, and Arayik Harutyunyan, along with ex-State Minister Ruben Vardanyan, Foreign Minister Davit Babayan, and other former officials. The fabricated charges against them could result in life sentences. On January 17, a show trial began in Baku against the Artsakh leaders.