Rasmus Canbäck: “The trials of Ruben and other ex-Nagorno-Karabakh leaders serve a dual purpose”

Rasmus Canbäck, a Swedish social anthropologist and expert on the Karabakh conflict, has written an article on Armenian political prisoners in Azerbaijan. In The Insider matter, the author focuses on Ruben Vardanian, who endured a 23-day hunger strike to protest the fictitious trial.

In the expert’s opinion, repressions against Ruben Vardanyan and other former leaders of Artsakh simultaneously destabilize the situation inside Armenia and additionally turn Azerbaijani society against Yerevan.

“Whereas Baku previously exerted constant pressure on Nagorno-Karabakh, the trials now serve the same dual purpose: the Azerbaijani public cohesion against a supposed external enemy and pressuring on Armenia,” Canbäck concludes.

More information: https://theins.ru/opinions/rasmus-kanbek/280114