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In a letter addressed to Thomas Bach, President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), and the Olympic Movement partners, Armenian National Olympic Committee President Gagik Tsarukyan called for efforts to release Armenian citizens held in Azerbaijan. The full letter is provided below.

"The Olympic Games of Paris 2024 are taking place during a time of global turmoil and tension, amidst ongoing wartime clashes and bloodshed.

We, as representatives of the International Olympic Movement, have an essential mission beyond our sporting duties: to contribute to the reduction of global tensions and the establishment of peace. Our awareness of this responsibility helps to instigate at least temporary ceasefires in many tense regions, lays the groundwork for long-term peace processes, and saves thousands of lives.

In recent years, my country, Armenia, has endured dreadful and unjust wars. Today, during the cessation of hostilities and ongoing negotiations, numerous citizens of the Republic of Armenia - state and public figures alike - are still held captive in Azerbaijan, effectively serving as live hostages.

As President of the Armenian National Olympic Committee, I direct my call and appeal to my international colleagues and all proponents of the International Olympic Movement.

I urge you to utilize your peaceful diplomatic channels and authority during the Paris Olympic Games to contribute to the release of arbitrarily detained citizens of the Republic of Armenia from the prisons of Baku, as a gesture towards establishing long-term and unequivocal peace, thereby fostering greater confidence in the prospects for peace in our region.

The Olympic movement embodies noble ideals of peace and humanism through sports. It represents a global movement for justice and coexistence, and through this action, we can contribute this collective victory of our movement to the invaluable treasury of lives and destinies saved during the long history of the Olympic Games."