Lawmaker Armen Gevorkyan
Azerbaijan is using the current “chaotic” situation in the region to intensify the destruction of Armenian Christian heritage in Artsakh, a senior lawmaker from the Armenia faction said during a debate at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe on Thursday.
“The new reality in the Middle East has created real risks for lasting peace and economic development across entire Caucasus region. Regional chaos is used by Azerbaijan to intensify the destruction of Armenian Christian heritage in Nagorno-Karabakh — a process that should concern all of us who care about peace, justice and identity,” lawmaker Armen Gevorgyan said during a discussion on “the need for the respect of international law, peace and stability in the broader Middle East” at the PACE spring session.
Below is the full text of Armen Gevorgyan’s speech.
In January, this chamber heard some calls for strong measures against Iran. This logic was implemented regardless of our common political will. The conflict is not over, but all of us arealready dealing with its contradictory results. The use of force has not resolved the problem. It has made it broader, deeper, and more dangerous, and Iran has emerged as a “steel porcupine” — a state that makes the cost of confrontation prohibitively high.
Instability in the Middle East is increasingly affecting Europe — not only in terms of energy. It is reshaping priorities, limiting the capacity to respond to multiple crises at once and testing democratic values and unity. The military operation against Iran aimed to eliminate a threat, but instead it has led to growing global interest in nuclear deterrence. More countries are coming to a simple conclusion: those who have such capabilities are far less likely to be targeted.
Intentions were to isolate Iran, but instead we see rising tensions surrounding Israel. The war has become a challenge for the entire region and has shown how fragile existing models of security and prosperity in Arab states truly are.
The new reality in the Middle East creates real risks for lasting peace and economic development across entire Caucasus region. Regional chaos is used by Azerbaijan to intensify the destruction of Armenian Christian heritage in Nagorno-Karabakh — a process that should concern all of us who care about peace,justice and identity. And finally, the unresolved conflict still has huge potential for further collapsing the region on a larger scale and destroying the global stability.
Dear colleagues,
It should be clear, especially in Europe, which faces serious security challenges, that force can alter realities. But it does not always make them just or acceptable to all. That is why our task today is not simply to wish for peace, but to stop the dangerous trend of war becoming a routine instrument of politics in the 21st century. If power replaces rules, no one will be safe.
West world cannot approach all nations in the same way or rely on a single model of dialogue.
Distinct civilizations require nuance and understanding. Ignoring this reality leads us to confrontation and failed policies. It raises a fundamental question: are we creating more risks than we are resolving? Because today, this is no longer only about Iran. It is about the kind of international security system we are shaping. It is time for wisdom and responsibility to return to international relations.
—