If the Azerbaijani soldier, who illegally crossed the border and entered the Armenian settlement of Shaki, isn’t prosecuted, then we can come to the conclusion that the relevant authorities of the Republic of Armenia do not know where the Armenian-Azerbaijani border lies, or generally, whether such a border exists at all. Furthermore, if this armed Azerbaijani intruder is not tried here in Armenia, it raises a crucial question: What is the difference between Armenia’s stance and that of the CSTO (Collective Security Treaty Organization), given that border clarification issues first emerged during the Jermuk clashes? This leads to another rhetorical question: In the future, once Russian border guards leave, is this how we intend to secure the Armenian-Azerbaijani border, allowing Azeris to enter freely whenever they want, harm our people, and walk away?
Ani Avetisyan, the 37-year-old woman, who suffered a gunshot wound shielding her three minor children with her own body, was transported to the hospital in critical condition, while the Azeri thug was eventually arrested, depriving him of the opportunity to reload the gun.
Even six years after the war, the malicious neighbour continues to make demands to Armenia, and the current government, which is an unprecedentedly weak and fearful one, accepts those demands and fulfills them. The Azerbaijani government uses a certain vocabulary when conveying its claims, which has an international context. Let us remember the very beginning, when the Artsakh war was referred to as a “special military operation.” Later, Russia used exactly the same wording for its war against Ukraine, and even before that it was used for the United States’ wars against Afghanistan, Iraq, and Syria. To that, Azerbaijan also added the term “Patriotic War,” clarifying that the country is waging a Patriotic War against Armenia.
After the war Azerbaijan demands demilitarization and denazification from Armenia. This is diplomatic vocabulary, too, which has been used since the Second World War. As part of demilitarization, Armenia, according to Aliyev, must reduce the size of the Armed Forces and defense spending in the state budget, limit weapons acquisition, as well as remove from the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence the formulations amounting to territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As for denazification, Azerbaijan’s demands are as follows: rewriting of history in Armenia with all the heroic episodes being renounced, weakening the Armenian Apostolic Church, switching to new, neutral school programs, etc. Without a doubt, that’s not all there is.
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Read more at “Hayatsk Yerevanits” Journal
ACNIS reView from Yerevan #37, 2026 of the Armenian Center for National and International Studies (ACNIS).
