Azerbaijan-Armenian conflict: Role of UN and the changing global order

‘Conflict’ has become synonymous to ‘everyday phenomenon.’ At this age and time, every household in every under-developed, developing and developed nation has been constantly subjected to blaring news about ongoing conflicts in the world. The disputes in these unfortunate conflict ridden zones of the world are notably ‘Territorial Conflicts’ and these existed since time immemorial. Time and again, many countries used manipulative diplomatic strategies to expand their territories and in some unfortunate cases, resorted to warfare.  In recent times, the world has been hooked on to the conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia. Not many know that this conflict is, as they say, ‘a tale as old as time.’

Azerbaijan is one of the oldest cultural centers of the world. It shares its border with Russia and Dagestan in the North; Iran, Georgia and Armenia in the South and Turkey in the west while the Caspian Sea lies on the East. Azerbaijan was famous for its precious metals and resources, as a result of which, the neighboring countries tried to gain monopoly over it. Consequentially, several wars ensued between these countries. The first conflict, in modern times over Azerbaijan, erupted between Russia and Iran in 1803. This war affected the Northern and Southern sides of Azerbaijan. The war known as ‘Russo-Persian War’, started in 1803 and ended in 1813. Subsequently, it created panic and irremediable havoc in Russia, Iran and Azerbaijan. The intentions of both the countries were to control the resources of Azerbaijan through territorial stretch. In 1813, this war ended with a peace treaty called the ‘Treaty of Gulistan.’

After nearly a decade, the world witnessed a second, full scale Russo-Persian war. Not only did the Russian Empire claw in and try to stretch its territory but also Qajar Iran (as it was known at the time due to the reigning Qajar dynasty) was an equally passionate contender. Hence, Azerbaijan once again became the bone of contention between Russia and Iran.  On the 10^th February 1828, another peace treaty was signed between Iran (Qajar Iran) and the Russian Empire. This treaty is called the ‘Turkmanchay Treaty.’ This treaty divided Azerbaijan into two parts (Northern and Southern Azerbaijan). While Northern Azerbaijan was under the influence of the Russian Empire, Southern Azerbaijan was under the influence of Iran. The people of Northern Azerbaijan were passionately advocating for their freedom from the Russian Empire. On the 28^th May 1918, Northern Azerbaijan saw a ray of hope and the people claimed to be independent after the Russian Empire was overthrown due to the ‘Bolshevik revolution.’ However, the ray of hope diminished after one year and eleven months, due to the USSR, which started controlling Azerbaijan from 1921-1991.

The country of Armenia has been subjected to a similar fate. It is a landlocked country, home to more than 3 million people known to have more resources than Azerbaijan. Undoubtedly, many different countries over time expressed their interest to trade and invest in Armenia. The Hittite Empire and the Middle Assyrian Empire came to Armenia primarily for trade in the 14^th century BC. But gradually, the Middle Assyrian Empire gained control over the entire political scenario. With the gradual fade out of the Middle Assyrian Empire, the Arsacid Empire started gaining a strong foothold in the region. It soon divided Armenia into two parts- Eastern and western Armenia.  But eventually the Abbasid Caliphate rejoined the two parts, thereby, heavily contributing towards their development and upliftment.

In the modern times, USSR was the key player in Armenian politics, culture and conflicts. Spanning from 1918-1991, the Armenian nation saw a series of conflicts, especially those localized to territory. Armenians wanted to remain with Russia due to their belief in the USSR rule which promised equal rights and freedom.However, the USSR left no stone unturned to prolong their rule. The numerous divisions they created by weakening the society’s spirit, strengthened their hold over it. One such prominent example is that of present day Nigarno Karbakh. This is one such territory that housed ethnic Armenians and was effectively established under the guidance of Joseph Stalin (Former Premier of Soviet Union). This small strip of land, called Nigarno Karbakh, has become one of the biggest conflicts of the 21^st century.

In years gone by, there was an absence of an effective international organization which could have controlled or managed those conflict ridden zones to prevent bloodshed and destruction.  Before 1939, the ‘League Of Nations’ tried to manage several such disputes in order to prevent the World War II, in vain. The League proved ineffective in developing welfare measures internationally.

It is high time that the United Nations and similar international communities focus all their energy in resolving the conflict rather than managing it. It is imperative for them to rethink and rework on their approach towards peace and security. 2020 has played a significant role in helping us understand the UN and other communities of its likeness in crisis solving and peacekeeping resolutions. With great power comes great responsibility, and it is crucial that these organizations, the ‘Modern Overlords’ acknowledge that. Because these territorial conflicts are akin to the dominos on a board; resolving one conflict will inevitably have a rippling effect on the others. Let’s not forget that every move is taking us one step closer or farther to an impending ‘Third World War.’ Only continuous peacekeeping efforts, de-escalation talks and upliftment of indigenous communities can be used as tools to take on the challenges in changing global order.

(Author is  RK columnist. He has done PG in Journalism and Mass Communication from IUST, Awantipora. He can be reached at, [email protected])