Armenian analyst decries EU envoy's remarks on demining

Armenian political analyst Hakob Badalyan has strongly criticized latest remarks by EU Special Representative for the South Caucasus Magdalena Grono, arguing that her emphasis on demining as a humanitarian priority overlooks the issue of Armenian prisoners in Azerbaijan.

Speaking in Yerevan, Grono said that as part of the EU's support for the Armenia-Azerbaijan peace process, the bloc is considering how it can best contribute to humanitarian issues, identifying demining as the primary area of focus because of its direct impact on affected communities.

In a social media post on Wednesday, Badalyan described the remarks as "nothing short of disgraceful," contending that the most pressing humanitarian issue in the peace process is the release and repatriation of Armenians unlawfully held in Azerbaijan.

"The main humanitarian issue should be securing the release and return of those people, not demining," Badalyan wrote. He argued that demining primarily addresses Azerbaijan's concerns and said Baku has succeeded in making that issue the EU's principal humanitarian priority while overshadowing the central issue: the continued detention of former Artsakh military and political leaders, as well as Armenian servicemen captured during the 2020 war.

Badalyan accused Azerbaijan of using the detainees as hostages in the Armenia-Azerbaijan peace process.