Pope Francis called for the release of Armenian prisoners of war as an important step for peace in the South Caucasus.
Armenia’s Embassy in the Vatican reported that during a meeting with foreign diplomats the pope discussed ongoing conflicts in various regions of the world.
“Particularly I am thinking about the ongoing situation in South Caucasus. I am calling on the parties to respect the ceasefire, and I am reiterating that the release of prisoners of war and detained civilians will be an important step for the highly desired peace treaty,” the pope said.
Representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross last month visited Armenia POWs being held captive in Azerbaijan.
Zara Amatuni, of the ICRC Armenia office told Armenpress on Monday that the POWs were able to make phone calls.
“As in previous visits, this time also the persons being held in Baku were given the opportunity to make phone calls, as well as exchange recorded video messages, which is another one of our efforts,” Amatuni added.
In September, Armenia’s Human Rights Defender Kristine Grigoryan said that Baku officially had confirmed that there are 38 Armenian POWs. However, according various other estimates that number is higher.
Azerbaijan is refusing to release the Armenian captives in another violation of the terms of the the November 9, 2020 agreement between Armenia, Russia and Azerbaijan.
