On Thursday 19th January 2022, Australia’s major 24-hour cable news network, Sky News, covered Azerbaijan’s ongoing blockade of Artsakh (Nagorno Karabakh). Armenian National Committee of Australia (ANC-AU) Executive Director, Michael Kolokossian was interviewed from the network’s Sydney studio by Sky News anchor, Ashleigh Gillon.
Kolokossian went live on air as Sydney Australians were preparing to protest at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs office, and he voiced the community’s frustrations and informed viewers of the on-the-ground humanitarian suffering of 120,000 Christian Armenians under siege at the hands of Azerbaijan’s petro-dictatorship, who continue their ethnic cleansing campaign of Nagorno Karabakh.
“This blockade follows the 2020 Nagorno Karabakh War, as a result of which Azerbaijan occupies more than 70% of the Republic of Artsakh, and it has continued its aggressive tactics against the 120,000 Christian Armenians in Artsakh. They have now blockaded the people there for over 38 days. No food, no medicine, no humanitarian relief is able to enter the region, and Azerbaijan is threatening to shoot down planes carrying international aid from the outside world,” Kolokossian said.
In response to queries over how dire the situation is, Kolokossian said: “There’s no food, no medical supplies, no humanitarian relief. We’re talking markets that don’t have the most basic necessities, fruits and vegetables, people needing to be transferred to Armenia for immediate medical attention, and Azerbaijan is restricting that transport.”
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“Azerbaijan is failing to adhere to the trilateral agreement signed between Russia, Armenia and Azerbaijan, which allowed for the unfettered movement of people and goods between the Berdzor (Lachin) Corridor,” Kolokossian added.
Kolokossian went on to express the Armenian-Australian community’s disappointment over Australia’s silence.
“The Australian Government needs to add its voice in condemning Azerbaijan. We’ve seen the United States, France, Canada, and other members of the international community condemn Azerbaijan and urge them to reopen the road, and we’re confused, we’re baffled as to why the Australian Government continues to remain silent when a petro-dictatorship and a country that has been run by the same family for over 30 years is committing a gross violation of human rights,” he said.
“Why is Australia remaining silent? Why isn’t it standing with its allies, especially as the Armenians of Nagorno Karabakh face an existential crisis of survival?” he concluded.
Following the interview, over 100 Armenian-Australians of Sydney held a demonstration organised by the community’s youth organisations outside the office of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, calling on Foreign Minister Penny Wong and the Anthony Albanese Government to end their silence and help unblock the road of life.
The full interview can be viewed by clicking here.
