U.S. Ambassador to Yerevan Lynne M. Tracy has met with families of Armenian servicemembers who were captured by Azerbaijan in 2020 and 2021.

Some of those prisoners of war have been handed long prison terms by Baku courts, and the whereabouts of many others is currently unknown.

"The discussion focused on human rights issues, including point eight of the November 2020 trilateral ceasefire statement by Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Russia on the exchange of prisoners of war, hostages and other detained persons and dead bodies, as well as the Geneva Convention," the U.S. Embassy said in a statement on Tuesday, April 5.

"We urge the release of all prisoners as well as increased efforts to obtain information about the fate of missing servicemembers, including from the 1990s, noting the pain of families who do not know their loved ones’ whereabouts or fate."

At least 19 of the hundreds of Armenian captives have been tortured and killed, according to their lawyers.