Today, battles are still raging on the Artsakh (Karabakh) front and it is not clear when the declared ceasefire will finally be observed. Nevertheless, let us hope that negotiations will be resumed soon. Following the analytical comments made by politicians and political scientists from various countries, including Russia and the West, I get the impression that Armenian diplomacy has not been particularly effective in these past 26 years. In 2012, I had numerous meetings in Brussels and Strasbourg with the EU high-ranking officials and parliamentarians. Besides discussions on human rights and democracy, everyone was interested in my opinion on the issue of Artsakh (Karabakh). Let me note in advance that almost all the persons that I talked to were for Azerbaijan’s so-called ‘territorial integrity.’
After my numerous compelling arguments and having no more arguments of their own these people would say: “OK, we can concede the point of the Mountainous Karabakh territory but what about the neighboring, occupied territories?” Of course, I would reply that once the status of Artsakh as an entity independent from Azerbaijan has been recognized, the issue of other territories can be discussed. I would try also to explain to them that, as it had turned out, they had no clue about it (See below) and had questioned my earlier statements.
At present, when following the speeches made by Western and Russian analysts, even of the so-called ‘pro-Armenian’ ones and in case they recognize Artsakh’s right to self-determination, one discovers that all of them still speak about the return of 5 or 7 districts to Azerbaijan and about around 1 million refugees, even though this number if inflated. At best, they point out the massacres that were perpetrated in Sumgait and Baku in 1988-1990 and the Armenian refugees from those cities. It would seem that everyone admits the claim that Shushi is an Azerbaijani city.
And excuse me but for those 26 years the issues of 1 million refugees and of Shushi have been Azerbaijan’s trump cards.
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Why the Armenian diplomacy, analytical centers and various lobbying organizations have not consistently raised the following issues over these years?
– Shushi was a cultural center of Eastern Armenia. Newspapers were published and theaters and educational institutions, etc. operated in Shushi. In 1919, the residents of Shushi were massacred by Caucasian Tatars and the city became an Azerbaijani one in Soviet times.
– When Autonomous Region of Mountainous Karabakh (ARMK) was established, it had a land border with Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic. In later years, though, Kashatagh district was removed from ARMK.
– Historically populated by Armenians, Shahumian district was left outside ARMK. In 1991, ethnic cleansing of Armenians was perpetrated in Getashen, Martunashen, Kamo and Azat villages of the district as well as in 14 villages in Hadrut district and in all villages of Berdadzor.
When speaking about Artsakh, Russian political scientists, in particular Semyon Baghdasarov, often mention Khachisar (Chardakhlu) village as an example (since dozens of famous top-ranking officers were born in that village, such as Hovhannes Baghramyan, Hamazasp Babajanyan and others) but they are probably unaware that ethnic cleansing of Armenians was perpetrated there as well.
It is this information that I kept presenting to EU politicians who were unaware of these facts. These facts are not mentioned by Russian and Western public figures who take a more or less pro-Armenian position. I apologize to those politicians and public figures who have raised these issues. However, consistent efforts at a State level to disseminate this crucial information have been inefficient, to put it mildly.
The Artsakh negotiations will be resumed soon. It is highly likely that during the first stage of the negotiations the Armenian side will face enormous pressure regarding issues of territories and the return of Azerbaijani refugees. The Armenian diplomacy should persistently raise the above-mentioned issues. To present these issues in a more professional and substantiated manner the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia should invite experts and take counsel with them.
Avetik Ishkhanyan