A few days ago, we got information that unexpected inspections are launched in all military bases of the South Military District of the Russian armed forces, including in No. 102 Russian military base stationed in Gyumri. “The inspections carried out in a number of military administration bodies and divisions will result in assessing the level of mobilization readiness of the military bases in southern military District,” said Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu in an interview with journalists. He instructed the Commander General of the Russian Air Force, Colonel-General Viktor Bondarev, to assess the readiness of the air defense units to give a counter attack in case of the conventional opponent as a result of the drills.
On the same day, another remarkable news was published by the Russian mass media. Communist MP of the State Duma, Valery Rashkin and Sergey Obukhov, sent a letter to the country’s leadership and the Foreign Ministry suggesting to annul the Moscow Treaty signed on March 16, 1921, between Russia and Turkey, according to which, Kars province, Surmali district, including Mount Ararat were passed to Turkey. “We need to legally demand the possibility of reviewing all non-profitable Russian-Turkish treaties for our country and its allies. Ankara needs to understand the end of the escalation of the conflict for itself. Only this can make it be sober and shield from new provocations,” noted Obukhov. The tension in Russia-Turkey relations does not blow down.
Moreover, Russia treats Turkey as it is proper to the “offended” that does not omit any opportunity to irritate the one who makes him angry. It has reached the point that the Turkish authorities are declaring for several times that Erdoğan is trying to get into contact with Vladimir Putin on the phone, but the Russian side does not respond. Putin can demonstrate his character and mood to Erdoğan for a long time. But here, it is important to know that in the meantime, with the help of whom and how Russia wants to spoil Erdoğan’s mood and infuriate him. One day he cannot answer Erdoğan’s phone calls, the other day imposes new sanctions against Turkey.
Parallel to this, Russian politicians and experts will exaggerate the topics. “Having Ossetia, Abkhazia, Crimea, Donetsk, Transdniestria, and Karabakh in the rear… We will still draw Karabakh’s card so that it will not seem a little. Let Ilham Heydarovich remember with his Turkish friends that we can create tension there when we want to. We will still draw this card, we are indifferent to the local population, you will forget it,” noted editor-in-chief of “Eco of Moscow”, Alexei Venediktov, recently. Or, an MP from the State Duma’s “Fair Russia”, Oleg Pakholkov, in his interview to one of the Azerbaijani website, is considering the indirect connection between the Moscow and Kars Treaties and the Karabakh conflict. “I know for sure that Lenin was compelled Ordzhonikidze to make the situation in Karabakh as it became. But 70 years later, war broke out again. The solution of the Karabakh problem in favor of Azerbaijan was adopted in the framework of the Moscow and Kars treaties” – said the Russian deputy to haqqin.az. Everything, as we can see, is proceeding in line with the Russian reality. If necessary, they remember our wounds, if not, they do not remember them, or rather to say, the rumors are heating up when Russia does not like something. But it is possible that Russia will decide to change the “tools” on the way to showing Turkey its place. No lack of fertile land in felt for it. For example, Russian political scientist who is living in the US for the last eight years, Andranik Migranyan. He gave an interview to Tert.am, in which he has said, “Armenian society must realize that Armenia can by no means come into conflict with Turkey – an 80-million-strong, rapidly developing state, with a huge military machine. So, if not for Russian guarantees, Armenia cannot place its hope in any other state or organization – the United States or Great Britain or NATO. This being so, I personally stated both in Washington and in Moscow that, should a Turkish warplane violate Armenia’s airspace, the Russian or Armenian air-defense forces may down the Turkish plane, and Turkey is the only side that will have to assume the responsibility for such an incident. I am speaking of the downing of a would-be violator plane from Armenia’s territory.” Then he continues, “Last autumn Turkish warplanes violated Armenia’s air space. But they should have been downed for Turkey to realize it is another state with its own borders. So, they should know they can be punished. They should know it is not a border to be violated with impunity. I am not at all advocating Armenian-Turkish confrontation, but Turkey is behaving with impudence. Therefore, they must know disciplinary measures can be taken against them. This is not only Armenia’s territory, but is also a territory of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), which is being defended, by Russia as well.
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Does anyone remember that Russian political scientist living with the nostalgia of Armenia, for example, dared to raise a question of until when Russia will continue to supply weapons to Azerbaijan. Or, now, on the background of tensions in Russian-Turkish relations, it is quite interesting whether Moscow will still continue to consistently arming Azerbaijan. Russian political scientists, however, do not so much care about the war situation in the Armenian-Azerbaijani borders and on the contact line of Nagorno-Karabakh to given interviews on this subject… Or, they knew that it is a useless subject but since now the idea of punishing Turkey is a “trend” in Moscow, our “patriots” are suggesting the option of punishing “thru the territory of Armenia” as the most appropriate option.
The problem is not that Turkey does not know that in cases of violating the airspace of Armenia once again, it may receive a response and must be informed about it from the interviews of Russian political analysts, but the fact that for the devotees of Putin’s Russia who are living in the US, Armenia is just a “territory” for Russia and for punishing its opponents, while those who are living in this “territory” are the one who barely survive under “Russian heel” rather than citizens of Armenia.
In the same interview, the journalist reminds Migranyan that the bill on the responsibility for the denial of the Armenian Genocide was put into circulation at the State Duma, so what happened to this bill, then notes that people in Armenia were upset that the Russians are trying to speculate the Armenian issue. Migranyan replies, “It’s funny that these local pseudo-patriots and Russophiles try to say that they are used. Hey, miserable animals, if not being used, would, at least, anyone remember about your problems? Thank God that the Turks have done such a nonsense that now Russia, with all its might, wants to punish the Turks, and for this reason, they bring out the problems buried in the archives because you, oh miserable animals, if you use all your efforts and work for one hundred years, you cannot bring out and put against the Turks, you, dirty animals, have committed such a crime and are responsible for it. You must say thank you to Russia for the fact that not Armenia but the Armenian problems are used. Thank God that Russia based on its own interests, raises your problems. Can Russia do an anti-Armenian task by saying, you Turks, bastards, you’ve committed a crime against Armenia?” In response to the question of the journalist of Tert.am, but Russia remembers it at convenient moments, Migranyan said as follows: “This is politics but if it were not remembered, then it would remain buried. Hey, idiots … you can bring it out and use it, the opportunity has come, the great state is using. Say thank you and kiss Russia’s ass rather than swagger that we are used. Hey, donkey colt…” As they say, “No Comment.” On the other hand, what can be expected from this political analyst having such ideas, who imagines Armenia exclusively attached to the “empires”?
In October 2014, during the discussion at the Union of Political Scientists of Armenia on “Armenia made a geostrategic choice: the consequences for our country and the Caucasus region”, Migranyan expressed the following opinion, “Armenians like to live under the great empire, we are used to it.” Let us then toast to those who annul the treaty on Russian-Turkish friendship and brotherhood and the Mount Ararat. Let us celebrate this event as long as Russia and Turkey have not reconciled and have not signed the next treaty on friendship and brotherhood.
EMMA GABRIELYAN, “Aravot” daily
