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Azerbaijan releases 5 Armenian POWs with Russia’s mediation — statement

Earlier, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan expressed his hope for Azerbaijan’s release of Armenian POWs and other captives without preconditions

MOSCOW, October 19. /TASS/. Russian Defense Ministry mediated the release of five Armenian servicemen from Azerbaijani custody, the Ministry said Tuesday.

"Today, on October 19, with Russia’s mediation, Azerbaijani authorities released five Armenian captives, who were brought to Yerevan on a Russian Aerospace Forces plane," the statement says.

According to the Defense Ministry, the release was negotiated by Russia’s Southern Military District Deputy Commander Lieutenant General Rustam Muradov and Russian peacekeeper contingent in Nagorno-Karabakh commander Lieutenant General Gennady Anashkin.

"Russia will continue its work on ensuring the implementation of the trilateral Agreement on cessation of the armed conflict," the Ministry of Defense underscored.

Earlier, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan expressed his hope for Azerbaijan’s release of Armenian POWs and other captives without preconditions, stating his readiness to finalize the handover of maps of mine fields in regions that went under Baku’s control in 2020.

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