1 - Ceasefire or Capitulation?
Artsakh Agreement Should be Amended
By Harut Sassounian
Publisher, The California Courier
www.TheCaliforniaCourier.com
2- French Senate Resolution urges Paris to recognize Artsakh
independence
3 - Armenia continues to fight COVID-19 pandemic
4- Dr. George G. Markarian (1932-2020)
5- Armenia Fund Raises $22.9M in Weeks Leading to Telethon 2020
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1 - Ceasefire or Capitulation?
Artsakh Agreement Should be Amended
By Harut Sassounian
Publisher, The California Courier
www.TheCaliforniaCourier.com
The “Statement” issued jointly by the Prime Minister of Armenia, and
the Presidents of Azerbaijan and Russia on Nov. 9, 2020, was described
by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan as merely a ceasefire document and
not the final resolution of the Artsakh issue.
While this agreement brought to an end the ongoing war, it was in
reality much more than a ceasefire. It included the return to
Azerbaijan most of the territories liberated by Armenians in the
1990’s. It also made other concessions to Azerbaijan which are
unrelated to Artsakh. Therefore, this document signifies a
capitulation on the part of Armenia.
This “Statement” is a loosely worded document which needs serious
clarification, if not renegotiation, to make it more precise. I will
comment on all nine points of this “Statement.”
The first unusual point in this “Statement” is that while the three
leaders agreed to stop the fighting “in their current position” (point
1), the Armenian side is obligated to return territories that were not
conquered by Azerbaijan. Most ceasefires indicate a stoppage at the
point of contact and the differences between the sides are later
settled at the negotiating table. This is why I call this agreement a
capitulation, not a ceasefire.
My second observation is that the “Statement” calls for the return of
the Aghdam District to Azerbaijan without referring to the Armenian
side as the one returning this territory (point 2). However, in point
6, the “Statement” names the Republic of Armenia as the side obligated
to return the Kelbajar and Lachin Districts to Azerbaijan. This is a
serious error on the part of Armenia since the liberation of Artsakh
and the surrounding territories have always been presented as the work
of the Armenian forces of Artsakh, not Armenia. With this sentence in
the “Statement,” Armenia accepts that it was the one that occupied
these territories, thus assuming legal liability for any compensation
to Azerbaijan ordered by an international court. The reference to the
“Republic of Armenia” should be amended to “Armenian forces.”
Point 3 of the “Statement”: The number of Russian peacekeeping forces
in Artsakh is stated as 1,960. However, there are reports that there
are many more Russian troops there now and possibly even more would be
coming in the future. This is a deviation from the “Statement,” which
means that other changes can also be made to this agreement.
Point 4 of the “Statement”: The Russian peacekeepers are mandated to
remain between the two sides for five years, unless Armenia or
Azerbaijan asks them to depart six months prior to the five year
period. While it is understood that no peacekeepers can remain
forever, this provision should alarm Armenians because Pres. Aliyev
has announced that Azerbaijan wants all of Artsakh back, not just a
part of it. Therefore, Azerbaijan will most probably ask Russia to
withdraw its troops in 4.5 years, opening the door for a complete
Azeri takeover of Artsakh. Even worse, Russian troops could withdraw
much earlier should a new war break between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
Point 5 of the “Statement” mentions that a “peacekeeping center shall
be established to oversee the ceasefire” without mentioning who will
manage such a center. Several days after this “Statement” was signed,
it was disclosed that Russian and Turkish troops will jointly manage
this center to be located on Azerbaijan’s territory, outside of
Artsakh. This was probably a concession by Pres. Putin to Turkey for
not allowing its troops to join the Russian peacekeepers.
Point 6 of the “Statement” asked Armenia to return Kelbajar to
Azerbaijan on Nov. 15, 2020. However, this date was later changed to
Nov. 25. Once again, this indicates that it is possible to amend the
terms of the “Statement.” Point 6 also calls for the construction of a
new route “within the next three years,” to connect Artsakh with
Armenia, bypassing Shushi which is now occupied by Azerbaijan.
Point 7 of the “Statement” provides that “internally displaced persons
and refugees shall return to the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh and
adjacent areas under the supervision of the United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees.” It is assumed that both Azeri and Armenian
refugees will have the right to return to their homes in Artsakh and
the surrounding territories. It is doubtful that Armenians would want
to return to the territories under Azerbaijan’s control. It is not
clearly stated if Azeri refugees have the right to return to the
Armenian controlled part of Artsakh which could lead to clashes
between the two communities.
Point 8 of the “Statement” calls for the “exchange [of] prisoners of
war, hostages and other detained persons, and dead bodies.” However,
there is no deadline specified for such an exchange. Since there are
many more Armenian captives than Azeris, this has created a serious
problem for the Armenian families of the captives who are subjected to
barbaric treatment by Azerbaijan.
Point 9 of the “Statement” is the most critical one and the most
dangerous for the future of Armenia. It calls for the establishment of
a corridor between the main territory of Azerbaijan and Nakhichevan
through the southern part of Armenia, near Iran’s border. This is a
red line that no Armenian leader should have crossed. It endangers the
sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Republic of Armenia. Such
a corridor has been the dream of all Pan-Turanians to connect Turkey
by land to Azerbaijan and beyond to the remaining Central Asian Turkic
Republics. This is one point that Pashinyan should have adamantly
refused to accept. I hope it is not too late to change this
treacherous provision. One possibility is that should Azerbaijan
violate any of the points of the “Statement,” Armenia would then
declare point 9 of the agreement to be null and void. For example, if
Azeri forces attack the currently Armenian inhabited part of Artsakh
or shut down the new Lachin corridor, Armenia could then close down
the Azeri corridor in the South of Armenia. Another opportunity could
come in five years, if Azerbaijan asks the Russian peacekeepers to
leave Artsakh. Armenia could then close the Azeri corridor crossing
its territory, since the “Statement” requires that Russian troops
guarantee the safety of this corridor. Pashinyan’s explanation, that
this provision would allow Armenia to use the existing railroad
through Nakhichevan and Azerbaijan to transport cargo to Russia, is a
fantasy. No Armenian cargo will be allowed to cross through
Nakhichevan or Azerbaijan. Furthermore, this corridor isolates Armenia
from Iran, a critical border for Armenia. To make matters worse for
Armenia and Iran, Azerbaijan plans to build a gas pipeline and a rail
line through this corridor, thereby circumventing Iranian territory
which would deprive Iran of lucrative revenues.
Most surprisingly, the ‘Statement’ makes no mention of the Jihadist
mercenaries brought to Azerbaijan by Turkey. The presence of these
terrorists is a violation of international law and poses a grave
danger to Russia, Iran as well as Armenia. This is exactly what the
French Foreign Minister pointed out during his recent visit to
Armenia. This oversight must be corrected immediately by adding a new
point to the ‘Statement,’ asking Azerbaijan to remove the Syrian
mercenaries from its territory.
In addition to these specific points, the signed “Statement” should
not be considered a legal document, since neither the Armenian
Constitutional Court nor the Armenian Parliament has approved it.
Pashinyan has no right to single-handedly sign a document on behalf of
the Republic of Armenia without the consent of the appropriate bodies,
as required by the Constitution.
Armenia now has at most five years to strengthen itself militarily by
building or acquiring advanced weapon systems so it can repel a new
attack by Azerbaijan and Turkey on Artsakh or Armenia. As mentioned
before, Armenia should immediately recognize Artsakh either as an
independent state or as part of the Republic of Armenia, thereby using
this recognition as a bargaining card in negotiating a better
agreement with Azerbaijan.
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2- French Senate Resolution urges Paris to recognize Artsakh
independence
(Combined Sources)—The French Senate voted Wednesday, November 25 to
urge the government to recognize Artsakh as an independent republic.
The symbolic resolution does not mean the French government will
recognize a sovereign Nagorno-Karabakh, but sends a message of support
to France’s large Armenian community.
The independence of Artsakh is recognized by the cities of
Alfortville, Limonest, and Vienne.
A Bill on the recognition of the Artsakh Republic was submitted to the
French National Assembly on October 14, 2020.
On November 18, 2020, the Council of Paris, the legislative body
governing Paris, recognized the independence of Artsakh and called on
the French government to follow.
On November 21, 2020, the city council of Saint-Étienne recognized the
independence of Artsakh.
The vote comes as the French government, French towns and aid groups
have stepped up aid efforts in recent days for people fleeing
Nagorno-Karabakh. French President Emmanuel Macron visited the
Armenian Fund offices of France on November 21. On November 22, the
first plane carrying humanitarian aid from the French government
arrived Yerevan, informed French Ambassador to Armenia Jonathan
Lacôte.
“This plane chartered by the Crisis Center of the French Foreign
Ministry carries medical equipment and drugs, to strengthen the
capacities of the Armenian health system, as well as basic necessities
for displaced people from Nagorno-Karabakh who are currently in
Armenia,” Lacôte said. A second plane arrived in Yerevan on November
27.
The French resolution calls on the government to “recognize the
Nagorno-Karabakh Republic and use this recognition as an instrument of
negotiations for the establishment of a sustainable peace.” It also
urges the government to pursue a tougher European response toward
Turkey, which has supported Azerbaijan in the conflict, and an
international war crimes investigation.
Official Paris hinted Thursday, November 25 that the government won’t
adopt the French Senate’s resolution. Recognition of the independence
of Nagorno-Karabakh is a major issue, and it has to be approached by
taking into consideration all the possible consequences, according to.
Secretary of State to the Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs of
France Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne during discussions in the French Senate.
Lemoyne stated that Turkey continues to play a destabilizing role and
that the trilateral statement signed by the Prime Minister of Armenia
and the Presidents of Russia and Azerbaijan leaves many questions
unanswered, the most important of which is the issue of status. “There
are many issues, and the active participation of the OSCE Minsk Group
is necessary. These are not issues that only Russia and Turkey can
discuss,” he said.
Touching upon the issue of addressing the European Court of Human
Rights in regard to war crimes, he stated that since neither Armenia
nor Azerbaijan has signed the Rome Statute of the International
Criminal Court, the issue can be solved through the United Nations
Security Council, but there are discrepancies in regard to this as
well.
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3 - Armenia continues to fight COVID-19 pandemic
Armenia continues to fight the COVID-19 pandemic as the country is
reeling from the news that Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan signed a
trilateral agreement brokered by Russia to end the war with with
Azerbaijan, in which much of Artsakh was ceded to Azerbaijan.
Thousands have taken to Republic Square in Yerevan to protest and
demand the resignation of Pashinyan. According to the Ministry of
Health, there were 24,518 active coronavirus cases in Armenia as of
Monday, November 30. The Ministry has recorded 135,124 coronavirus
cases and 2,164 deaths; 108,442 have recovered.
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4- Dr. George G. Markarian (1932-2020)
George G. Markarian, MD, age 88, a longtime resident of Lisle,
Illinois, passed away on November 22. He was born on May 15, 1932 in
Tabriz, Iran.
Dr. Markarian is survived by his wife of 58 years, Larissa Markarian
(nee Bagratuni), sons Gregory George Markarian, MD and Michael George
Markarian; grandchilDr.en Farrah Elena Markarian and Joseph Hideki
Markarian; siblings Hrand Markarian and Angie Demers-Markarian, MD;
niece and nephew Pierre Demers and Helen Demers. He is preceded in
death by his parents Paranjem and Bartough Markarian; and his sister
Goharik Markarian.
Dr. George Markarian was the son of Armenian immigrant parents who
fled Soviet Armenia to Iran to escape communist persecution. After 3
years his family moved to Tehran, where he grew up. He was an
extremely gifted soccer player and also very talented academically. As
he grew up his talents in academics and soccer grew immensely and by
the time he was 17 he was admitted to the Iranian National team as
their star center forward and also shortly thereafter he was admitted
to the University of Tehran medical school. His medical career ran in
parallel with a phenomenal soccer career. As captain of the national
team he led the 1951 Iranian squad to a silver medal in the Asia
Olympic Games (Asian Cup). He was also the premier center forward for
the top club team in Iran called Taj. This team annually finished
number one in the Iranian league while he was a member. He played
alongside other Iranian greats like Khatemi , Boyuk Jedikar, and
Mahmoud Bayati. Dr. Markarian also started a medical school university
team that finished first in Iran 6 straight years while he was
playing. He often had to play multiple games on the same day because
at that time he played for three teams and would sometimes go from one
game to another on the same day. He was a prolific scorer and while
records were not kept in that era, he would often score multiple goals
per game whether it be for the national team, Taj or the medical
school team. One example was a day he had two games with the first
game in the morning for the medical school where he scored 5 goals and
then later that evening he scored 3 goals for the Taj club in the
Iranian league.
In 1956 Iran was playing their very important rival Iraq. Before that
match Dr. Markarian was engrossed in his medical studies and informed
the national team he could not play for the match because the training
would interfere with his preparation for his medical school exams.
When the Shah of Iran learned of this and realized how important
George’s role would be to have success in such an important match, he
contacted his professor and made arrangements for George’s exams to be
delayed. Also, the Shah had Dr. Markarian stay at his palace and study
and train for the match on his private soccer field within the palace
grounds. The Shah’s strategy reaped rewards against a very tough and
talented Iraq squad as Iran defeated Iraq 4-3. Dr. Markarian scored 3
goals including the game winner and had a perfect assist for Iran’s
second goal of the match which was a long cross outside the penalty
area near the corner flag to the head of Nader Afshar (second goal of
the match). For many Iranians of the time Dr. Markarian was a national
hero, a treasure, a superstar and while he was known mostly in Iran,
to many who watched his style of play and ability to Dr.ibble and
easily beat defenders without losing the ball and finishing a lot of
opportunities with goals, they considered him amongst the elite
players of the world. While he was in Iran he also volunteered in an
Armenian Medical clinic in Tehran where he provided free services for
Armenians in need.
His desire to become a great doctor opened a new chapter in his life
as he immigrated to the United States to start a residency in Chicago,
Illinois, for the subspecialty of Orthopedic Surgery. In 1958, he
worked with Dr. Sid Shafer at Illinois Masonic Hospital. After he
received very valuable instruction, he entered Northwestern University
Medical School Orthopedic Surgery residency program. There he had the
opportunity to work with Dr. Hampar Kelikian who influenced him
greatly. During his residency he was also chief of 6 services at Cook
County hospital. In 1966 he came to Naperville Illinois to be the
first Orthopedic Surgeon. Like his soccer career he had a very
impressive career as an orthopedic surgeon. In 1967, he learned about
a new British procedure at McGill University in Montreal Canada called
a total hip replacement from the inventor Sir John Charnley. That same
year he performed the first total hip in the United States at Edward
Hospital. It was a cemented Mckee Farrar metal on metal implant. Since
there were no instruments available because he was the first to do
this in the United States he had to buy all the instruments himself
and the implants and had to import the cement from Canada because
these materials were not available. The first patient was a
Benedictine Monk from Saint Procopius abbey in Lisle, Illinois. He had
done 50 cases by 1970 when the first one was done at Northwestern
Memorial Hospital by Dr. Clinton Compere who borrowed Dr. Markarian’s
instrumentation to do his first case. During his career he had done
thousands of total hip and total knee replacements and he was always
on the cutting edge of technology as improvements came along. He was
also very innovative with fracture care in particular in his own
techniques for proximal humerus fractures, distal clavicle as
separations, fractures and acetabular fractures. He often had
instruments developed by the Orthopedic Device companies to perform
these techniques. He was also one of the first people to perform
arthroscopic surgery in the United States. In 1976 he did his first
knee arthroscopy at Edward hospital. Because the equipment was scarce
he had to purchase his own equipment. He was an excellent arthroscopic
surgeon for the knee, shoulder and ankle and elbow. He had a
reputation for excellence, kindness, honesty and compassion for his
patients. He practiced for over 36 years and performed over 25,000
surgeries. He was also president of the medical staff of Edward
hospital for over 25 years and chairman of the department of surgery
for 25 years at Edward hospital. He brought in new management which
transformed Edward hospital into a reputable medical center that could
accommodate the needs of a growing community. He improved the quality
standards, rewrote the bylaws and implemented departmental policies.
He retired from Orthopedic Surgery in 1999 and resided in his house in
Lisle IL, where he enjoyed time with his family and friends.
The Funeral service was held on November 28 at Armenian All Saints
Apostolic Church 1701 Greenwood Rd, Glenview, IL 60026. Interment
followed at Naperville Cemetery, Naperville.
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5- Armenia Fund Raises $22.9M in Weeks Leading to Telethon 2020
The 23rd Annual Armenia Fund Thanksgiving Telethon took place in Los
Angeles on November 26 with the slogan of Unity, Strength and Faith.
Armenia Fund raised $22.9 million during its Thanksgiving fundraising
drive—raised between November 9 and Thanksgiving Day—culminating in
the telethon. The event united the Armenian-American community in a
show of strength and devotion to help those back in the homeland who
are going through their most difficult time in a generation.
“In light of recent developments in Artsakh and Armenia, all proceeds
of Telethon 2020 will be directed to supporting 100,000 displaced
individuals and the families of our fallen soldiers who lost their
lives to protect the sovereignty of both republics,” said Armenia Fund
USA President Maria Mehranian.
Since September 27, Armenia Fund in the United States has already
raised more than $102 million from the community through its
#ArtsakhStrong campaign and over 100 tons of humanitarian aid
including medical equipment and supplies as well as other essential
items.
Fundraising phonathons have also been taking place in various Armenian
communities in Europe and will continue around the world through to
the end of the year. On November 22, the Annual Phonathon took place
in France by the Hayastan All Armenian Fund’s partner organization
Fonds Armenien de France which so far has raised over $3.13 million.
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