In the last decade, Azerbaijan and Armenia fought two wars against each other, the first in 2020 and the second in 2023. Recently, there have been accusations against Azerbaijan, categorizing the country and its struggle to regain its land as “a nation that committed war crimes” and holds “innocent Armenians hostage.” Pro-Armenian journalists quote these Armenian prisoners in Azerbaijani jails, individuals who were once in decision-making positions in Karabakh (Artsakh), and people with a history of violence against Azerbaijanis.
Those who are now complaining about the poor treatment they receive do not reveal the crimes they committed, and those journalists do not report on the reasons why some of the detainees were arrested. Traditional opponents of Azerbaijan attack the Azerbaijani courts, as though they are targeting innocent people, but this perception arises from a lack of understanding about what the Armenians did to the Azerbaijani people. However, we will correct this misunderstanding.
One of the prominent figures in Azerbaijani prison, an individual accused of several serious charges against Azerbaijan, is Ruben Vardanyan. Vardanyan is an Armenian oligarch who made his fortune in Russia through stock market trading companies. He presents himself as a successful man, an Armenian patriot, and a member of the elite, but behind his impressive façade, Vardanyan is neither innocent nor pure.
His business dealings that remain in Russia are currently suffering from Western sanctions because he laundered “dirty” money for Putin’s associates. Through his “laundromat,” Vardanyan became closer to Putin’s inner circle, continuing to launder money for him, earning the nickname “Putin’s wallet.” Beyond money laundering in Russia for Putin, Azerbaijan accuses Vardanyan of sabotaging peace talks between Azerbaijan and Armenia, illegally crossing borders, financing terrorism, and personally engaging in Armenian terrorism against Azerbaijan.
According to testimonies, Vardanyan routinely crossed the border into Karabakh illegally to supply separatist gangs with money and ammunition to use against the Azerbaijani army. The amount of weapons the Armenian separatists received from Vardanyan was so large that weapon caches continue to be discovered to this day. Vardanyan has never denied these allegations, and in fact, he has openly threatened the Azerbaijani government, endorsed the Armenian militants who carried out Operation Nemesis (which resulted in the assassination of many Azerbaijani officials), and stated, “Anything can happen to the Azerbaijani government.”
In addition to his crimes against Azerbaijan, Vardanyan actively worked against Ukraine on behalf of Russia. Ruben Vardanyan is suspected of being sent to Armenia by Russia to sway political and diplomatic decisions in favor of Russian interests. It is important to note that Vardanyan fled Russia and returned to Armenia only after Russia invaded Ukraine and the imposition of Western sanctions on Putin’s associates. The Western sanctions included blocking trade routes for essential products, including weaponry.
Russia had to find a way to transfer the necessary arms to its territory without being exposed to the West. For this purpose, Vardanyan was sent to Armenia, which is a major exporter of vital chips for advanced weaponry—exactly what Russia needed after the sanctions were imposed. Vardanyan seems to have become deeply involved in the Russian-Iranian-Armenian axis, working behind the scenes for his master in the Kremlin. Iran supplies Russia with suicide drones, Armenia provides Russia with essential chips for advanced weapons, and Armenian territory is used to transfer Iranian weaponry to Russia. Without Vardanyan, this entire logistical network would not exist. This indicates that Ruben Vardanyan is not the innocent man he and his pro-Armenian supporters try to portray.
Despite his problematic past and the serious accusations against him, his family released a statement on social media claiming that Azerbaijan imprisoned an innocent and helpless philanthropist. The prestigious Gatestone Institute even published an article titled “Azerbaijan continues to illegally hold, torture Armenian hostages,” which implicitly implied that the Armenians that Azerbaijan holds are in fact “hostages,” even though there is little in common between the Armenians being held by Azerbaijan and the Israelis that Hamas is holding hostage in Gaza.
We must not forget who Vardanyan is—an individual accused of terrorism, money laundering, aiding Putin in the war against Ukraine, and wanted in two countries. Someone like him will say anything to avoid facing justice, so his words must be taken with a grain of salt, and we must not forget that there is no smoke without fire. Azerbaijan has arrested other Armenians who were connected to the Armenian government. These individuals are accused of crimes against Azerbaijan, and Azerbaijan has the right to put them on trial. Terrorists are thus not hostages and never will be.
In conclusion, I would like to address another claim made about Azerbaijan—that U.S. President Donald Trump should pressure Azerbaijan to release the Armenian detainees. But why should Trump do that? Azerbaijan is a country that extends its hand to the West; it is Israel’s closest ally, a staunch partner of the United States in the Middle East. Armenia, on the other hand, cooperates with Iran on certain issues and assists Russia—two enemies of the U.S. and the West in particular. So, who do you think the United States should support in this issue? Obviously, Azerbaijan.
I will finish by saying that Azerbaijan and Armenia have had a long-standing conflict, long before the 2020 Karabakh war. In war, both sides do what is necessary to survive and win. To judge which country is the “bad guy” in this conflict, one cannot look at isolated incidents; the entire sequence of events must be considered in order to judge a country’s actions during wartime. Those who raise claims against Azerbaijan regarding the trial of Armenian detainees have not properly studied the history of the Caucuses.
