YEREVAN. – There were agreements that were violated; the reasons are not available. In the field of assumptions, I can say that the adversary probably wants to change the rules of the game; maybe it is due to the decision-makers. Andranik Kocharyan, chair of the Standing Committee on Defense and Security in the National Assembly of Armenia and an MP of the ruling My Step bloc, on Friday told this to reporters in the parliament, referring to the postponement of the Armenian captives’ return from Azerbaijan.

"You know that in the ceasefire regime, there are signatures of the leaders of Armenia, Russia and Azerbaijan, and maybe a problem is being discussed there that prevents the return of the captives," he said.

Kocharyan did not agree with the opinion that the Azerbaijanis are holding these Armenian POWs in exchange for territories. "They are holding the captives to cause tension in Armenia. It can have nothing to do with the territories because a territorial issue cannot be discussed with the [issue of] captives. Having captives is a reality that must be solved," he said.

"The issue of captives is very sensitive, and this issue must be resolved in such a way that the adversary does not turn it into a stage for political actions against our country," Kocharyan added.

He stated that the process of returning the captives will continue. According to the MP of Armenia’s ruling force, the issue of the return of the captives was not raised by chance after the recent meeting between PM Nikol Pashinyan and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Reporters asked whether, in that case, it was a move against Russia. "It was a move where it was clear that Russia had invested its participation in the solution of that problem," Kocharyan responded.

Also, Andranik Kocharyan stated that Azerbaijan wants the Turkish authorities to also be involved in resolving the issue of the return of the captives.