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Tomorrow, Tuesday, 21 January, a new hearing will begin in the arbitrary trial against the editor-in-chief of Azerbaijani news site Abzas Media Sevinj Vagif gizi Abbasova, known as Sevinj Vagifgizi, and five of her colleagues. All defendants plead not guilty to the eight blatantly unfounded charges against them, including “foreign currency smuggling”. According to the defence lawyers, the prosecution has presented no tangible evidence. The journalists face up to 12 years in prison.

At the preliminary hearing on 17 December 2024, reporters attempting to cover the trial were denied access to the courtroom, allegedly due to lack of space although the courtroom was filled with individuals unrelated to the case. Legitimate defence requests — including calls for further investigation, access to video recordings in investigative case files, and replacing provisional detention with house arrest — were rejected, highlighting the arbitrary nature of the proceedings.

The abuse of the judiciary 

What’s more, two of the three judges handling the case were the subject of investigations published by Abzas Media that exposed their dependence on political authorities. One judge, Rasim Sadikhov, participated in the politically motivated conviction of a human rights defender, as determined by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in 2018.

“The persecution of Sevinj Vagifgizi and her colleagues, known for their investigations into high-level state corruption, illustrates the authoritarian tendencies of Ilham Aliyev’s regime. These prosecutions are part of a broader strategy to discredit and neutralise independent media like Abzas Media, which challenge the regime by exposing abuses of power. RSF demands their immediate release and calls on Azerbaijan’s international partners, particularly the European Union, to condition their cooperation with the country on its concrete progress in press freedom.

Sevinj Vagifgizi was arrested by police at Baku Airport upon her return from Istanbul on 21 November 2023. Fully aware she would be detained, the Abzas Media editor-in-chief returned to Azerbaijan. Her pretrial detention has been repeatedly extended, as have the detentions of her colleagues. She has endured horrific conditions for over a year: overcrowded and unventilated cells, threats, psychological abuse, and violations of her rights as a prisoner. Visits and phone calls with her family were only permitted after a public protest by her mother. Moreover, her family’s bank accounts were frozen for six months.

Persistent harassment

Sevinj Vagifgizi’s detention is the latest chapter in her history of being persecuted which includes threats, police violence, surveillance, and other abuses. Detained several times over her career, she was subjected to a five-year travel ban in 2015, which the ECHR ruled illegal in May 2020.

The arrest of Abzas Media’s journalists marks a new wave of repression. At least 20 independent media professionals are currently imprisoned in Azerbaijan, victims of a judicial system and prison administration tightly controlled by the Aliyev clan. The recent imprisonment of Toplum TV journalist Farid Ismailov on 17 January and the interrogation of Voice of America journalist Ulviyya Guliyeva the day before signal grim prospects for the future of the country’s independent media. 

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Russian President Vladimir Putin have held a telephone conversation, during which they have discussed Yerevan’s approval of a draft law that would see the commencement of Armenia’s EU negotiations.

On Friday, both Pashinyan’s office and the Kremlin published statements about the call, with Armenia publishing a relatively shorter version of the statement, compared to Russia’s.

According to a statement from Pashinyan’s office, the two leaders ‘discussed the results’ of Armenia’s presidency of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) in 2024, ‘upcoming activities within the framework of the EAEU, as well as a number of issues on the Armenia–Russia bilateral agenda’.

The Russian side noted that the call took place at Armenia’s behest, and that they ‘acknowledged the tangible, practical impact’ of the joint work within the EAEU, including for the Armenian economy.

The statement concluded with a paragraph noting that Pashinyan had ‘explained the situation with Yerevan’s recent steps in its relations with the European Union’, and that in response, Putin ‘offered his comments and assessments’.

The Armenian government’s approval of a draft law which would begin Armenia’s process of joining the EU swiftly stirred Russia’s disapproval in the recent weeks since it was announced.

Several high-ranking Russian officials, including Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexei Overchuk and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, noted that Armenia’s accession to the EU is ‘incompatible’ with its EAEU membership, and reminded Armenians of the benefits the country receives as part of its membership to the economic bloc.

Overchuk said that Moscow considered Yerevan’s approval of the bill to be ‘the beginning of Armenia’s withdrawal from the EAEU’.

Armenia’s energy security

The Kremlin’s statement noted that the Russian and Armenian leaders also discussed issues related to the energy sector, noting that the two discussed ‘several current aspects of further deepening integration, primarily in the energy sector’.

The issue was also included in the Strategic Partnership Charter signed by Armenia and the US last week. The Charter noted that ‘Armenia and the United States intend to explore opportunities to increase and diversify Armenia’s energy production and supplies’.

‘This includes the development of a civil nuclear power program with the highest standards for nuclear safety, security, and nonproliferation; efforts to enhance energy security and efficiency, including through a significant increase in the share of renewables in Armenia’s energy mix; and measures to increase Armenia’s energy connectivity to regional and European markets’.

In July 2024, the head of Armenia’s Security Council said that Yerevan and Washington are in ‘substantive’ negotiations to build a new nuclear power plant in Armenia.

However, months earlier, Armenia also courted Russia’s state-owned nuclear agency Rosatom in December 2023 to discuss the extension of the Metsamor nuclear power plant until 2036, with talks ‘ongoing’ about building a new reactor at the aging facility.

Freefall of bilateral relations

Despite Russian officials stating that the development of a strategic partnership with the US was Armenia’s sovereign right, they nonetheless criticised the decision.

Lavrov also admitted that bilateral relations between Armenia and Russia are ‘not without difficulties’, but said that ‘dialogue continues’.

Last week also saw another crisis in Armenian and Russian relations, as the Armenian Foreign Ministry announced that Russia’s Ambassador to Armenia had been summoned and handed a letter of protest concerning a programme aired on Russia’s state-run TV outlet, in which statements were made against Armenia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

High-Tech Industries Minister Mkhitar Hayrapetyan then suggested that the programme could be banned in Armenia.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova stated that Armenia’s ‘reaction is puzzling because we are talking about the statements of a journalist’, adding that they had heard from Yerevan that Armenia is committed to freedom of speech.