Ruben Vardanyan has once again declared a hunger strike in an Azerbaijani detention center.

Previously, he had repeatedly filed complaints in the Azerbaijani court regarding the insufficient time allotted for discussions with his lawyer, and the materials related to the criminal cases against him, provided for his review, were written in Azerbaijani, a language he does not understand.

"This is my response to the gross violations of international and Azerbaijani procedural law. What is happening in the courtroom cannot be called a trial – it is a political show that demonstratively ignores my rights to a fair hearing," – quotes Vardanyan's words as reported by the Russian service of the BBC.

During the trial, Vardanyan proclaimed his innocence and refused to testify.

This marks Vardanyan's second hunger strike while in detention. He declared his first hunger strike in April of last year, demanding a fair trial and protesting the ban on communication with his relatives, both in person and over the phone. After 20 days, he terminated the hunger strike due to deteriorating health conditions.

Ruben Vardanyan was detained by Azerbaijani military forces on September 27, 2023, while attempting to cross from Nagorno-Karabakh into Armenia. Subsequently, the court ordered his arrest. Vardanyan was charged with terrorism financing, participation in the creation and activities of illegal armed groups, and illegal border crossing.

In December 2024, Azerbaijani authorities brought an additional 45 charges against Vardanyan under 20 articles of the criminal code. The former businessman and politician could face imprisonment for up to life.

• Ruben Vardanyan – an investment banker born in Yerevan, was one of the key figures in the Russian stock market of the 1990s. In late 2022, he renounced his Russian citizenship and moved to Nagorno-Karabakh, where he headed the government of the self-proclaimed republic. He held this position for nearly four months.
• In 2023, Azerbaijan conducted a military operation in the region, resulting in the dissolution of the unrecognized Armenian republic, forcing around 120,000 people to flee their homes. In September, Vardanyan was detained by Azerbaijani authorities along with several other members of the Karabakh leadership. All of them have been charged with acts of aggression, war crimes, including genocide, deportation of the population, and torture.