Perspectives on the Solution of the Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict

Many people are asking what Armenia can do for Artsakh if it itself has been placed in a very difficult situation. All of us are concerned by the question of whether the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh may continue living in their homeland without the prospect of deportation and genocide. This is the least the civilized world should do to protect and guarantee the right of the physical existence of Armenian people. It is worth recalling that in 1993-1995 there were discussions in the OSCE about deploying international peacekeepers in the conflict zone. Later the issue was dropped due to the simple reason of the insufficiency of the OSCE budget for such an operation.

Currently a Russian peacekeeping brigade is standing between the Armenian and Azerbaijani positions. On the political level, the right to life of the Artsakh Armenians is protected by the governments of the US and European Union. So what shall Armenia do in this situation?

Let’s recall that in 1992 Armenia and Azerbaijan were admitted to the OSCE and later into other international organizations because they had indirectly recognized their mutual territorial integrity. Moreover, Armenia has always declared that it is demanding a fair solution of the Artsakh cause based on three provisions of the Helsinki Final Act of 1975. One of these provisions is the recognition of territorial integrity. The second is the right of nations for self-determination, and the third is refraining from the use of force during the dispute settlement.

Now that the prospect of signing a peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan has turned into an imperative what should Armenia do to prevent the peace treaty from removing the issue of recognizing the independence of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic from the international agenda? We propose the following. Since the treaty shall enter into force upon being ratified by the Armenian parliament, whereas the parliament is the unique body proclaiming the will of the Armenian people, the National Assembly of Republic of Armenia, in order to continue assisting its Artsakh compatriots, shall at its session convened for ratification with the attendance of all representatives of the National Assembly of Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, adopt a special reservation. It shall be in the form of a declaration that within the framework of international law and following the fundamental provisions of the OSCE, the Republic of Armenia shall continue assisting the Armenians of Artsakh with all its resources and abilities until a mutually acceptable solution for their cause can be reached. Such a document should also proclaim that the Republic of Armenia must mobilize all of its abilities and efforts to draw the attention of the international community to the inadmissibility of any new deportations, displacements from the homeland and genocide of the Artsakh Armenians. Such a document could be a political ground for furthering the official and parliamentary diplomacy of Armenia for years to come.

Reducing Armenian Internal Political Conflict and Creating Consolidation

It is simply surprising as to why no one in the Republic of Armenia, which has so many problems in dispute, speaks about ascertaining public opinion through a referendum. Why do we let mutually exclusive opinions and disputes leading to enmity shake the foundations of our national existence without even attempting some constructive solutions?

Why can we not start constructive discussions in the homeland and in diaspora, the results of which are so impatiently awaited by Armenians over the world? Why can we not try achieving internal consolidation of Armenian society when the prospective of normalization with Turkey and Azerbaijan seems quite realistic? Who will we blame for the consequences of such normalization: Russia, the US, Great Britain or some other country?

The author of this article believes that the finest representatives of Armenian political experts are right to consistently demand the development of adaptation mechanisms to mitigate to the minimum the consequences of further economic, cultural and political Turkish-Azerbaijani expansion, which is possible to do only under conditions of internal solidarity and consolidation.