Armenia Divided Internally, Isolated Externally

Although President Erdogan is undoing Ataturk’s reforms at home, he is continuing to emulate his foreign policy philosophy. After World War I, when Western powers were planning to partition Turkey’s lands, Ataturk reached out to Lenin, head of the then-new Soviet state, feigning to lead a progressive liberation movement, the Milli Party, to receive arms, food and gold. Of course, he used those gains to decimate the Armenians in Cilicia and the Greeks in Smyrna. President Putin, certainly well-read in history, will thus certainly be measured in his embrace of Erdogan.

Although the tripartite Baku meeting claims to have only economic issues on its agenda, it will certainly address also the Karabagh conflict. An agreement has already been reached to build the North-South rail system, bypassing Armenia.

The agitation and turmoil in Armenia has been triggered by a lack of transparency on developments and negotiations over Karabagh. In the absence of concrete information, people have to conjecture and manufacture their own news, and develop theories based on those assumptions and faulty facts. At this time, theories abound that Karabagh will be forced to surrender five or even seven regions, under their control for strategic reasons and Azeris will come and settle in those areas and like most Muslim populations, will multiply at a high rate and eventually will take over Karabagh. And at the same time, the enclave would not be allowed to hold a referendum on its status. Then the Azeris will also encroach on the territory of Armenia proper, which is losing its population at an alarming rate.

Another theory is that the Russians have placed in their military base in Armenia the most advanced and state-of-the-art weaponry but that all the military hardware is under Russian control and will not be used if Armenia is attacked, as demonstrated during the April war. Therefore, in light of those unfounded theories, the government has to be more open with the people, no matter how bitter the truth may be.

President Putin made a statement before his departure to Baku, that Armenia and Azerbaijan have to make compromises and in the final settlement, there will be no victors and no losers, so that future generations in both countries can live in peace. These are very realistic political statements about peace, which has eluded the two sides for 25 years.

Armenians have to find scapegoats for their problems. That is why they are vilifying the president and his government. No one can deny the rampant corruption but is this the time to weaken the hands of the president when he is on his way to Moscow to learn about the tough dictates of Russia emerging from the recent meetings with Turkey, Azerbaijan and Iran?

Anti-Russian sentiments are at a fever pitch in Armenia. Does that generate good will or more antipathy in Russia?

Recently, Vladimir Zhirinovsky, the founder of the nationalist Liberal Democratic Party, said, “The hell with the Armenians,” although last year on the occasion of the Genocide centennial he was encouraging Armenians to invade Turkey and retake their historic homeland.

Granted, Zhirinovsky is the clown prince of Russian politics, but in essence, he was expressing the genuine sentiments of the Russians regarding Armenians.

Armenia is isolated externally and divided internally. There are factors beyond Armenia’s control that impact the course of its history. But internal unity is within our reach. If we can unify Armenia, maybe we can also break the noose of isolation. This could be our last chance to have an independent homeland.