Zori Balayan

Balayan's views on the annexation of Crimea by Russia and alleged lobbying activities were criticized by some Armenian politicians, including Igor Muradyan and Levon Ter-Petrosian. Balayan's letter to Vladimir Putin, in which he implies that both Armenia and Karabakh are Russian soil, met harsh criticism in Armenia in 2013.

The authorities in Azerbaijan allege that Balayan was involved in a terrorist bombing of the metro in Baku in 1994. In a letter to Balayan, the general secretary of Interpol, however, stated that the agency considered the complaint politically motivated and that it had removed Balayan from its wanted list as a result.

In October 1993, he signed the Letter of Forty-Two.

In 1988 he and Armenian poet Silva Kaputikyan were received by Mikhail Gorbachev and discussed the absence of Armenian-language television programs and textbooks in Nagorno-Karabakh schools as well as other concerns of Karabakh's majority-Armenian population.

Balayan was born in Stepanakert, Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast (Azerbaijan SSR). He graduated from the Ryazan State Medical University in 1963. From 1971 to 1973 he traversed the Kamchatka and Chokotskaya tundras on dog-sleds, traveling as far as the North Sea. In his essay "Hearth," published during the pre-perestroika era, he tried to demonstrate the Armenian identity of Nagorno-Karabakh and identified Nakhichevan as historically belonging to Armenia. He further regarded Turks (including Azerbaijan) as an enemy of both Russia and Armenia. Azerbaijani historian Isa Gambar criticized Balayan's book in an article entitled Old Songs and New Legends.

Zori Hayki Balayan (Armenian: Զորի Հայկի Բալայան, born February 10, 1935) is an Armenian novelist, journalist, sports doctor, traveler and sports expert. He was awarded the "Renowned master of the Arts" an Armenian official title.