Author: Andranik Taslakhchian

New Armenian ambassador to Qatar presents copy of credentials at foreign ministry

Andranik Taslakhchian

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 09:45,

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 21, ARMENPRESS. The new Armenian Ambassador to Qatar Armen Sargsyan presented the copy of his credentials to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Secretary General Ahmad Hassen Al-Hammadi.

During the meeting the ambassador and Mr. Al-Hammadi attached importance to the Armenian-Qatari relations based on friendship and mutual respect between the two nations, the embassy of Armenia in Qatar said in a news release.

They reiterated commitment to take all possible steps for further enhancing and strengthening the relations.

Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan

Seyran Ohanyan: There are numerous threats, but capabilities to prevent them are not so great

Andranik Taslakhchian
Panorama, Armenia
Oct 21 2021

Armenia’s former Defense Minister Seyran Ohanyan, the head of the opposition Armenia parliamentary faction, on Thursday attended a roundtable discussion organized by the Truth for Generations initiative. The parents and other relatives of the soldiers who died during the 44-day war in Artsakh also took part in the discussion.

“Despite suffering a defeat, we managed to maintain our line of contact at around 265 km area of the 283 km Artsakh border due to the actions of skilled soldiers and commanders,” Ohanyan said, addressing the attendees.

He stressed that the “path of Armenia has never been easy”, but Armenia has always been able to get out of a difficult situation thanks to the right assessment of history, unity and dedication of hero soldiers.

In Ohanyan’s words, Armenia has now found itself in a difficult military-political situation, the security environment is fragile and there are numerous external and internal threats. Meanwhile, he said, Armenia’s capabilities to prevent those challenges are not so great.

“We are now in a psychological state where the wounds of the entire Armenian nation have not yet healed,” he said, paying respects to the fallen servicemen.

Ohanyan expressed hope that the discussion will be held through dialogue and will touch upon the situation after the war, the security issues and the problems of the residents of the border settlements.

MP Tigran Abrahamyan from the opposition With Honor faction, Armenia bloc member Elena Kirakosyan, psychologist Khachik Gasparyan and former Armenian Ombudsman Larisa Alaverdyan were among the speakers of the event.

Armenpress: CSTO PA political and international cooperation committee to hold next meeting in Yerevan

Andranik Taslakhchian

CSTO PA political and international cooperation committee to hold next meeting in Yerevan

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 09:22,

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 20, ARMENPRESS. The Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) Parliamentary Assembly’s Standing Committee on Political and International Cooperation Affairs will hold its next meeting in Yerevan in spring 2022.

The decision was made during the committee’s October 19 meeting in St. Petersburg, where Vice Speaker of Parliament of Armenia Hakob Arshakyan made the invitation.

The meeting focused on the regional situation and the threats facing the collective security.

Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan

No change in positions in Syunik’s Pela Sar area, Armenia’s National Security Service says

Andranik Taslakhchian
Public Radio of Armenia
Oct 18 2021
, 18:00

 Less than a minute

There has been change of position in the area known as Pela Sar in Armenia’s Syunik region, the National Security Service informs.

It says the border guards continue to protect the state border in the mentioned section.

The comments come in response to media reports claiming that Kapan’s Pela Sar has been handed over to Azerbaijan.

​Forkner Elementary to become first school in FUSD to be named after an Armenian-American

Andranik Taslakhchian
Your Central Valley, CA
Oct 14 2021

Forkner Elementary to become first school in FUSD to be named after an Armenian-American

KSEE24 NEWS

by: Karen Alvarez

Posted: Oct 14, 2021 / 07:08 PM PDT / Updated: Oct 14, 2021 / 07:08 PM PDT



FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE) – A Fresno Unified elementary school is getting a lot of attention after school board members voted to change its name to honor a prominent Armenian figure.
It’s the first school in the district to be named after an Armenian-American.

Following an emotional debate, the Fresno Unified school board voted to change the name Forkner Elementary to H. Roger Tatarian Elementary.

“I actually think that’s an absolutely fabulous idea and that needs to happen eventually,” says Ryan Duff principal of Forkner Elementary. “What I am here to do is to speak and support my current students and be here on behalf of them.”

One by one, community members took to the podium to express their opinions.

Michelle Asadoorian, one of the members spearheading the campaign to change the name, was present at Wednesday night’s meeting and says the name change is long overdue.

An Armenian herself, she says the name change is a step in the right direction and finally reflects a significant part of the Central Valley’s population.

“In 140 years and now I believe 110 schools, there had not been until last night a school honoring the contributions of Armenian-Americans,” says Asadoorian.

Asadoorian says it’s important to have role models to look up to and that’s why they went with Roger Tatarian, a prominent Armenian journalist.

One of the main reasons for the proposed name change is the alleged past of the man the school is currently named after. Jesse Clayton Forkner was a Fresno developer in the early 1900s who reportedly refused to sell land to people of color.

People like Juanita Cantu are excited about the change.

“Definitely excited about the name change, it should be all positive,” says Cantu. “We’re going to be the first school who’s named after an Armenian.”

A father of a current Forkner Elementary student says he’s not opposed to the name change but says the name changing process was ill-advised and will be disruptive to current students.

“I think the kids don’t need this type of change in their lives after a year and a half of remote learning and I also think the way the board went about doing this change, without outreach to the Forkner community, without an outreach to parents, was wrong.”

Forkner Elementary was built in 1980 and has over 500 students.

A spokesperson with Fresno Unified says physical name changes to the school will begin after the end of the current school year, with the name change becoming effective at the start of the 2022/2023 school year.

Paris votes to establish an Esplanade of Armenia in the 8th arrondissement

Andranik Taslakhchian
Public Radio of Armenia
Oct 15 2021
, 11:50

 Less than a minute

The City Council of Paris voted unanimously in the evening of October 14 to establish an Esplanade of Armenia in the 8th arrondissement of the capital.

This space will encompass the part of Court Albert I where the statue of Komitas is located, the Garden of Armenia, and will extend as far as the Pont de l’Alma, – an exceptional location in the heart of the prestigious 8th arrondissement of Paris, right in the center of the capital.

Armenia’s Ambassador to France Hasmik Tolmadjian, who was present in the stands of the City Council at the event, immediately reacted to thank the Mayor of Paris Anne Hidalgo, his deputy Arnaud Ngatcha, for this token of friendship and solidarity with Armenia.

Catholicos of All Armenians conveyed his message to the inter-church prayer organized by Sant’Egidio community

Andranik Taslakhchian
Public Radio of Armenia
Oct 8 2021
October 8, 2021, 16:05

 1 minute read

On October 7, at the amphitheater of the Colosseum in Rome (Italy), His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians, participated in the annual traditional peace prayer organized by the community of Sant’Egidio, which was attended by the Heads of the Sister Churches, leaders and officials from different countries. During the inter-church prayer for peace, His Holiness conveyed his message to those present.

“The gift of peace of our Lord Jesus Christ, which he left to his disciples about two thousand years ago, is given to us today to distribute to Christians in the twenty-first century, to all people, especially in these days of violence, war, ethnic discrimination, and religious extremism,” His Holiness said.

His Holiness referred to the catastrophic aftermath of the 44-day war. “We come from a country where the Christian testimony has been concentrated in every stone and grain of history through the omnipotent hand of the Almighty,” the Catholicos said.

“My Armenian nation knows well the price of peace that it has paid and continues to pay. Last year, our people crossed the Path of the Cross again. To protect the right to live freely and independently, the right to God-given peaceful life, the children of my nation suffered the horrors of the 44-day war unleashed by Azerbaijan with the help of Turkey and the involvement of terrorist groups,” the Catholicos said.

The Patriarch of All Armenians thanked the Sister Churches for condemning the injustice and genocide during the war and expressed confidence that they would continue to speak out against the seizure of the right of the Armenians of Artsakh to live independently, and for the sake of freedom of the captives, for the preservation of the Armenian religious and cultural heritage on Armenian lands currently under Azerbaijani control, for the re-establishment of lasting peace in the region.

Messages from religious and church leaders were heard during the ceremony. At the end, after the message of Pope Francis, those present observed a minute of silence in memory of the victims of all the wars, then the children conveyed the message of peace to the participants.

 

RFE/RL Armenian Report – 10/04/2021

Andranik Taslakhchian 
                                        Monday, October 4, 2021
Armenian General Arrested In Corruption Probe
Armenia - Lieutenant-General Stepan Galstian, deputy chief of the Armenian 
Army's General Staff.
The National Security Service (NSS) has made another high-profile arrest in an 
ongoing criminal investigation into supplies of allegedly faulty ammunition to 
Armenia’s armed forces.
Lieutenant-General Stepan Galstian, a deputy chief of the Armenian army’s 
General Staff, was charged with fraud and abuse of power and remanded in 
pre-trial custody on Saturday two days after being summoned to the NSS for 
questioning.
Galstian denies the accusations. His lawyer told News.am that he will appeal 
against a district court’s decision to allow investigators to hold the general 
in pre-trial detention.
The NSS arrested former Defense Minister Davit Tonoyan and an arms dealer 
reputedly close to him on Wednesday part of the same criminal case. It charged 
them with fraud and embezzlement that cost the state almost 2.3 billion drams 
($4.7 million).
Both men deny the charges. Tonoyan’s lawyer said on Friday that he will petition 
the Court of Appeals to release his client from custody pending investigation.
Another Armenian general was arrested earlier in September. The NSS claimed that 
the general abused his powers to arrange for personal gain a $4.7 million 
contract for the supply of outdated rockets to the armed forces.
According to the security service, the Defense Ministry had refused to buy those 
rockets from a private intermediary in 2011.
Kocharian Cautious About Anti-Government Protests
        • Astghik Bedevian
Armenia - Former President Robert Kocharian speaks at a news conference, 
Yerevan, October 4, 2021.
Former President Robert Kocharian said on Monday that Armenia’s main opposition 
alliance led by him needs to “generate” greater popular anger at the government 
before trying to topple it with street protests.
“Yes, we are going to also launch a street campaign,” he told a news conference. 
“But conditions should be made ripe. We must also work with the people all over 
Armenia. We must try to convince them.
“You cannot launch a street campaign without the active involvement of the 
people. That active involvement should also be achieved by public relations 
efforts.”
Kocharian was therefore careful not to set any dates for renewed anti-government 
demonstrations promised by his Hayastan bloc.
Kocharian told senior members of the bloc to intensify its activities and public 
outreach efforts at a meeting held on September 14. One of them said afterwards 
that “street actions” against Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s government are 
imminent.
“The biggest problem is that a considerable part of our people has come to terms 
with this situation and voted for these ones,” Kocharian said on Monday, 
referring to Pashinian’s political team. “Let’s not deceive ourselves. This is 
the reality.”
The 67-year-old ex-president, who had ruled Armenia from 1998-2008, insisted at 
the same time that a politically active minority of citizens can also pose a 
serious threat to Pashinian’s hold on power.
“Even if five percent of the population fights against a government with 
determination, no government can withstand that,” he said.
Armenia - Supporters of former President Robert Kocharian and his opposition 
alliance attend an election campaign rally in Yerevan, June 18, 2021.
“Twenty-one percent of voters voted for us. We will try to first and foremost 
make that segment more active. We will try to also convince other people, who 
voted for these authorities, in that they made a mistake,” added Kocharian.
Pashinian’s Civil Contract party won Armenia’s June 20 parliamentary elections 
with almost 54 percent of the vote, according to their official results. 
Kocharian’s bloc came in a distant second.
Kocharian, who pulled a massive crowd in Yerevan during the election campaign, 
again predicted that another snap election will likely be held before the end of 
2022. He also repeated opposition claims that Pashinian mishandled last year’s 
war in Nagorno-Karabakh and is not capable of dealing post-war security 
challenges still facing Armenia.
Kocharian further claimed that Armenia’s defeat in the war was not only the 
result of Pashinian’s incompetence but also a “possible pre-planned defeat” 
agreed with Azerbaijan. “There will be no calm in our country until these 
suspicions are dispelled,” he said.
Armenia Reassures Iran As Tehran-Baku Tensions Mount
        • Emil Danielyan
        • Gevorg Stamboltsian
Iran - Foreign Ministers Ararat Mirzoyan (right) of Armenia and Hossein 
Amir-Abdollahian of Iran meet in Tehran, October 4, 2021
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian sent his foreign minister to Tehran on Monday one 
day after publicly ruling out Armenia’s involvement in any anti-Iranian “plots” 
amid stern warnings issued by Iran to Azerbaijan.
Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan met with his Iranian counterpart Hossein 
Amir-Abdollahian for the second time in less than two weeks.
Amir-Abdollahian reportedly sounded satisfied with their latest talks, saying 
that the two sides agreed to boost Armenian-Iranian political, economic and 
cultural ties. He also said Iran will not allow “some foreign states” to damage 
its relations with neighbors, including Armenia.
Mirzoyan visited the Iranian capital amid mounting tensions between Tehran and 
Baku underscored by large-scale Iranian military exercises held along the 
Islamic Republic’s border with Azerbaijan.
The Iranian military reportedly began massing troops there after Baku set up on 
September 12 a roadblock on the main highway connecting Armenia with Iran.
The Armenian government controversially ceded a 21-kilometer section of the road 
to Azerbaijan following last year’s war in Nagorno-Karabakh. Azerbaijani police 
and customs are now collecting a hefty “road tax” from Iranian trucks and other 
vehicles passing through it, causing significant disruptions in cargo traffic 
between Armenia and Iran.
The Iranian Foreign Ministry last week linked the drills to Azerbaijan’s 
military ties with Israel, saying that Iran “will not tolerate Israeli presence 
near its borders.”
Amir-Abdollahian on Sunday also pointed to the widely documented participation 
of Sunni Muslim militants from the Middle East in the Karabakh war on the 
Azerbaijani side. He said those “members of terrorist movements” were deployed 
in areas south of Karabakh bordering northwestern Iran.
“The presence of Zionists and terrorists [in Azerbaijan] … seriously worries 
us,” the foreign minister told Iranian state television. “It can create problems 
for the government of Azerbaijan in the near future.”
A helicopter is seen during an Iranian Army exercise dubbed "Fatehan of 
Kheibar", in the northwestern parts of Iran, in this picture obtained on October 
1, 2021.
“Since we are not sure that they [Sunni militants] have left the area, the 
drills will convey a message to them,” the commander of the Iranian ground 
forces, Brigadier General Kiomars Heidari, said, according to Iran’s Press TV.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei commented on “the problem that 
arose on our northwestern border recently” when he addressed graduates of 
Iranian military academies earlier on Sunday.
“We will not allow alien forces to intervene in processes taking place there. He 
who thinks that he can ensure his own security by pinning hopes on outsiders 
will get a slap,” Khamenei said in a warning clearly addressed to Baku.
The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry rejected Tehran’s “baseless” claims. 
“Unfortunately, friendly Iran never condemned the [Armenian] occupation of our 
territory just as resolutely,” said a ministry spokeswoman.
Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev criticized the Iranian war games on 
September 27. He also said Baku set up the roadblock on the Armenia-Iran highway 
because Tehran ignored its repeated warnings to stop Iranian trucks from 
shipping cargo to Karabakh.
The road mostly passes through Armenia’s southeastern Syunik province which is 
sandwiched between Azerbaijan and its Nakhichevan exclave and also borders Iran. 
Earlier this year, Aliyev threatened to forcibly open a transport corridor to 
Nakhichevan, drawing strong condemnation from Armenia.
Mojtaba Zonnouri, a senior Iranian parliamentarian, on Monday accused Aliyev of 
trying to “cut Iran’s access to Armenia” with the help of Turkey and Israel. The 
official IRNA news agency quoted Zonnouri as warning that Azerbaijan and Turkey 
“will pay a big price if they pose a threat to Iran.”
Zonnouri was apparently among 165 members of Iran’s parliament who issued a 
joint statement on Sunday saying that the Islamic Republic will not tolerate 
“any geopolitical change and alteration of the borders of neighbor countries.”
Armenia - A cargo terminal at a border crossing with Iran, November 29, 2018. 
(Photo by the State Revenue Committee of Armenia)
On September 28, a conservative Iranian newspaper reputedly controlled by 
Khamenei’s office published a commentary that accused Aliyev and Turkish 
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of helping the United States and Israel to hatch 
a geopolitical “plot” against Iran and Russia.
A columnist for the Kayhan newspaper also charged that Pashinian has joined the 
“hidden alliance” of the four states and is willing to “cede Syunik province to 
Azerbaijan.”
The Armenian prime minister responded to the allegation on Sunday at the start 
of an official visit to Lithuania.
“It is no secret that there are some circles that manage from time to time to 
publish articles in the Iranian press saying that Armenia is involved in some 
conspiracies against Iran,” Pashinian told members of the Armenian community in 
the Baltic state.
“I am sure our Iranian colleagues know that Armenia has never been involved and 
will never be involved in a conspiracy against Iran because those relations 
[between Armenia and Iran] are extremely important to us.”
Pashinian has been facing similar allegations from his political opponents and 
other critics at home. They have deplored his government’s failure to explicitly 
condemn Baku’s decision to start taxing Iranian vehicles.
Pashinian and Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi discussed the Armenia-Iran traffic 
disruptions when they met in Tajikistan’s capital Dushanbe on September 17.
According to the Armenian Foreign Ministry, the foreign ministers of the two 
neighboring states discussed “developments taking place in the region” and 
“regional security” at their meeting in Tehran.
Speaking at a joint news briefing with Amir-Abdollahian, Mirzoyan effectively 
rejected Aliyev’s demands for the transport “corridor” passing through Armenia. 
The Armenian minister accused Baku of misrepresenting Russian-brokered 
agreements that call for the opening of transport links between Armenia and 
Azerbaijan.
“In this regard, we highly appreciate Iran’s position on Armenia’s territorial 
integrity and the inviolability of its borders,” added Mirzoyan.
Amir-Abdollahian was reported to express hope on Monday that Yerevan will speed 
up the ongoing reconstruction of an alternative Syunik highway that will allow 
Iranian drivers to bypass the Azerbaijani checkpoint. Armenia’s Deputy Prime 
Minister Suren Papikian said last week that the roadwork will be completed by 
the end of November.
Meanwhile, the Iranian army drills continued on Monday, involving special 
forces, heavy artillery, tanks and helicopter gunships. Images aired by Iranian 
television suggested that they are taking place on Iran’s border with 
Nakhichevan.
In what may be a related development, Turkish media reported that Azerbaijani 
and Turkish troops will start on Tuesday joint exercises in Nakhichevan.
Pashinian Ready To Meet Aliyev
Lithuania - Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian meets with members of the 
Armenian community in Vilnius, October 3, 2021.
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian said on Sunday that he is ready to meet with 
Azerbaijan’s Ilham Aliyev for talks on confidence-building measures in the 
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone.
Aliyev expressed readiness for such a meeting on Friday. “I am ready to hold 
talks with Mr. Pashinian at any moment, whenever he is ready,” told the Spanish 
EFE news agency. “I am open to discussions and believe they could be a good sign 
that the war is over.”
Pashinian responded to the offer at the start of an official visit to Lithuania. 
Meeting with members of the local Armenian community, he said Yerevan and Baku 
should “try to move forward with small steps to build some trust” between them.
Pashinian said he is particularly interested in securing the release of dozens 
of Armenian soldiers and civilians held by Azerbaijan nearly one year after 
Russia brokered a ceasefire that stopped the 44-day war in Karabakh. He said to 
that end the Armenian side is ready to release more maps of Armenian minefields 
in districts around Karabakh that were retaken by Azerbaijani forces during and 
after the war.
“I am ready to take all the maps in our possession [to the meeting with Aliyev] 
and am calling on the Azerbaijani president to bring along all of our 
prisoners,” added Pashinian.
Armenia already provided Baku such maps this summer in return for the release of 
30 Armenian prisoners of war.
Aliyev claimed that those maps are not accurate and said Yerevan should provide 
more detailed information about all Armenian minefields along the former “line 
of contact” around Karabakh. “If the Armenian side does that … we will respond 
in kind,” he told EFE without elaborating.
Aliyev and Pashinian most recently held talks in Moscow last January in a 
meeting hosted by Russian President Vladimir Putin. The meeting focused on the 
opening of transport links between Armenia and Azerbaijan envisaged by the 
Karabakh ceasefire.
Aliyev repeatedly threatened in the following months to forcibly open a 
transport “corridor” connecting Azerbaijan to its Nakhichevan exclave through 
Armenia’s Syunik province. He also said that Azerbaijan’s victory in the war put 
an end to the Karabakh conflict.
Aliyev offered to meet with Pashinian one week after the Armenian and 
Azerbaijani foreign ministers met in New York in the presence of the U.S., 
Russian and French co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group.
In a joint statement on those talks, the three mediators said they proposed 
“specific focused measures to deescalate the situation and possible next steps.” 
They also reaffirmed their readiness to help the conflicting sides “find 
comprehensive solutions to all remaining issues related to or resulting from the 
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.”
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
Copyright (c) 2021 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc.
1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

​Why India needs to rediscover Armenia to counter Turkey and Pakistan

Andranik Taslakhchian
IANS (India) – MSN
Sept 27 2021

Why India needs to rediscover Armenia to counter Turkey and Pakistan

IANS

New Delhi, Sep 27: Recently the Republic of Armenia celebrated 30 years of independence. This year too, the Armenian College and Philanthropic Academy celebrated the bicentennial – a seminal moment not just for the academy, or for the Armenian community of Kolkata or India but for India-Armenia relations. These enjoy a natural edge given the centuries long history of interaction between our two peoples. At least since the 16th century AD, there is documented history of Armenians in India; undocumented history of interactions stretch back to before the Christian era.

Fast forward to the present. Prime Minister Narendra Modi met his Armenian counterpart Nikol Pashanian in New York in September 2019 on the side-lines of the UN General Assembly. “Had extensive deliberations with PM @NikolPashinyan. We talked about expanding India-Armenia cooperation in aspects relating to technology, pharmaceuticals and agro-based industries. PM Pashinyan also referred to the popularity of Indian movies, music and Yoga in Armenia,” he had tweeted after the meeting.

This news gained currency because just days before that, Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had stridently condemned India’s reorganisation of Jammu and Kashmir state. And Armenia, inimical to Turkey as it was because of the genocide of the Armenians by the Ottomans, became a popular word for a while. Then in March last year India won a $40 million defence deal to supply four indigenously-built military radars to Armenia. The equipment was developed by India’s Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and manufactured by Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL). This had also generated some excitement in India, and then was forgotten.

Then the war erupted in the South Caucasus between Armenia and Azerbaijan over disputed territories. Going into the history of the unfortunate enclave of Nagorno Karabakh will require a separate article. But Azerbaijan won the war purely because of Turkish support. As a result, Ankara gained a strategic foothold in the region.

While India officially kept equidistant from the parties to the conflict, most Indians batted for Armenia.

More recently External Affairs Minister Jaishankar met with his Armenian counterpart Ararat Mirzoyan in Dushanbe, on the side-lines of the SCO and CSTO meetings which were hosted in the Tajik capital. During that meeting, the two top diplomats agreed to take bilateral relations to a “qualitatively new level”. And Armenia at the meeting once again expressed support for India’s position on Jammu and Kashmir.

There is a case to be made for closer ties with Armenia. There is immense goodwill for Indians in the tiny Caucasian country. Tapping into it will produce long-term strategic benefits. For one, being as it is in Russia’s strategic backyard, Armenia enjoys deep bilateral relations with Russia. It past of the Russia-led Collective Security Treaty Organization, (CSTO) as well as the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU), which is also headed by Moscow. Therefore, closer defence ties would be to the benefit of both countries.

At the ongoing UN General Assembly, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has once again raked up the Kashmir issue. Armenia, which has no diplomatic relations with Turkey, unequivocally backs India’s position on Kashmir as it supports India’s claims to a permanent UN Security Council seat.

Turkey is also now well ensconced in South Asia through its close cooperation with Pakistan mostly through defence deals even if Pakistan does more of the paying. But now, Armenia’s arch-rival Azerbaijan is also injecting itself into South Asian politics. While Pakistan firmly supported Azerbaijan in its war with Armenia last year, with some credible reports of Pakistani fighters joining the war on the Azeri side, Azerbaijan has in recent times increased its partnership including in defence ties with Pakistan. Turkey, Azerbaijan and Pakistan recently held two weeks long military drills ‘Three Brothers – 2021’ in Baku.

Most significantly, these drills followed a tripartite meeting in Islamabad in January this year of the foreign ministers of these three states and the adoption by the three states of the “Islamabad Declaration ”. And what did this declaration say? Amongst other things it said that all three states, i.e., Azerbaijan, Turkey and Pakistan back each other’s position on Kashmir, Cyprus and Nagorno Karabakh.

The tripartite statement that was issued, “Reaffirmed the most recent OIC resolution 10/47-Pol on the Jammu and Kashmir dispute adopted in Niamey in November 2020 and Communiqués of OIC Contact Group on Jammu and Kashmir and expressed deep concern over the unilateral actions of 5 August 2019, continuing grave human rights violations in and efforts to change the demographic structure of Jammu and Kashmir, and reiterated their principled position for a peaceful settlement of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute in accordance with the relevant UN Security Council Resolutions…”

After Erdogan’s tirade this year at the UN podium, Jaishankar met his Cypriot counterpart Nikos Christodoulides and tweeted “….Important that relevant UN Security Council resolutions in respect of Cyprus are adhered to by all”, in an obvious reference to Turkey.

But mere tweeting is a knee-jerk reaction not becoming of an emerging power. India has been trying to cultivate ties with Greece, again spurred on by its strained relations with Turkey. Cultivating close relations with Armenia, including in defence, should therefore be a matter of course.

In this context it is significant that Armenia is part of the International North South Transport Corridor (INSTC) and Indian ambassador in Tehran is on record saying that India plans “…. to connect the western part of Chabahar (port) and the Indian Ocean with Eurasia and Helsinki in Finland, through the territory of Armenia, creating a North-South Corridor” rather than through Azerbaijan.

This is why the virtual event to mark Chabahar Day earlier in March this year included, along with the traditional signatories of the Tripartite agreement – Iran and Afghanistan – Armenia too. India wishes to link up the INSTC to Chabahar Port which logistically makes a lot of sense for India’s trade.

With the ascendancy of the Taliban in Afghanistan, a consolidation of Turkey’s footprint in the region is a matter of time. For India it is time to follow up rhetoric with action. And aligning strategically with Armenia and getting a foothold in the Southern Caucasus would be a good way to start. Simultaneously, New Delhi may also consider recognising the Armenian genocide of 1915.

(Aditi Bhaduri is a columnist specialising in Eurasian geopolitics. Views expressed are personal. The content is being carried under an arrangement with )

–indianarrative

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/why-india-needs-to-rediscover-armenia-to-counter-turkey-and-pakistan/ar-AAORfkv

Iran Revolutionary Guard Corps deputy commander compares Azerbaijan president to small child

Andranik Taslakhchian
News.am, Armenia
Sept 29 2021
10:48, 29.09.2021

Ali Fadavi, Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) of Iran, spoke to reporters with sarcasm about Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev’s allegations about the IRGC military exercises on the border with Azerbaijan, Rokna reported.

“When a small child insults and curses you, you put your hand on that child’s head and do not pay attention,” Fadavi said.

In an interview with Anadolu, Aliyev had expressed resentment over the aforesaid Iranian military exercises on the border with Azerbaijan, wondering why they were not held earlier when the territories on the other side of the border were controlled by the Armenian side.