ICJ rejects Armenia’s claims over Ruben Vardanyan trial

On 25 April 2025, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague declined a series of requests by Armenia regarding the treatment of Ruben Vardanyan and 15 other Armenians currently on trial before the Baku Military Court. The charges relate to crimes committed during Armenia’s aggression against Azerbaijan, and during and after the 2020 Patriotic War, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan said, Azernews reports.

“Having considered Azerbaijan’s response and supporting evidence in the case concerning the Application of the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (CERD), the Court decided not to request further information or to commission an independent inquiry or expert report into the detainees’ circumstances.

It is well known that the Armenians currently on trial are treated in accordance with all applicable Azerbaijani and international legal standards, and have received multiple visits from the ICRC and Azerbaijan’s Office of the Commissioner for Human Rights.

The Court’s decision follows a recent opinion by the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, which confirmed that Ruben Vardanyan is detained based on criminal charges involving serious threats to Azerbaijan’s national security, public safety, and public order.

This decision once again confirms that Armenia’s baseless requests, aimed at disrupting the ongoing trials and distracting from the misconduct of Armenia’s illegally installed regime in the formerly-occupied territories, will not succeed,” the statement reads.