A Baku military court has sentenced former Nagorno-Karabakh state minister and businessman Ruben Vardanyan to 20 years in prison. This was reported by the state agency Azertag. Previously, the prosecution had insisted on a life sentence.

The trial began in Baku in January 2025. Representing the state as the victim, the head of the Azerbaijani Cabinet of Ministers' apparatus, Rufat Mammadov, stated his agreement with the evidence presented by the prosecution and requested the court to consider it in the verdict.

Vardanyan's family called the sentence "horrifying but expected." According to relatives, the trial was held behind closed doors, and evidence for the charges was allegedly not presented. They also declared their intention to seek the release of the businessman and other Armenian prisoners they consider political.

Vardanyan is an entrepreneur and investor who was among the wealthiest Russian businessmen according to Forbes magazine. In autumn 2022, he renounced his Russian citizenship, stating that this decision was related to the situation around Nagorno-Karabakh.

The businessman was detained by Azerbaijani law enforcement in September 2023 while attempting to enter Armenia after Azerbaijan's military operation in the region, which resulted in the disputed territory coming under Baku's control. He has been in custody since then.

According to the investigation, Vardanyan faces over 40 charges, including financing terrorism, creating illegal armed formations, and illegally crossing the Azerbaijani state border.

Source: kun.uz