Author: Emil Lazarian

“I should like to see any power of the world destroy this race, this small tribe of unimportant people, whose wars have all been fought and lost, whose structures have crumbled, literature is unread, music is unheard, and prayers are no more answered. Go ahead, destroy Armenia . See if you can do it. Send them into the desert without bread or water. Burn their homes and churches. Then see if they will not laugh, sing and pray again. For when two of them meet anywhere in the world, see if they will not create a New Armenia.” - WS

Lemkin Institute’s new report warns of genocide in Nagorno-Karabakh, alarming evidence Aliyev plans military assault

Emil Lazarian

 11:39, 6 September 2023

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 6, ARMENPRESS. The Lemkin Institute for Genocide Prevention has published a new report on the risk of genocide by Azerbaijan in Artsakh (Nagorno Karabakh).

In a statement, the Lemkin Institute for Genocide Prevention said it has released an emergency draft of the report due to the dire circumstances of the blockade and Azerbaijan’s military buildup along the borders of Artsakh and Armenia.

“The Lemkin Institute for Genocide Prevention hopes that this report will contribute to global resolve to protect the lives and the identity of the Armenians of Artsakh, prevent a Second Armenian Genocide, pressure Azerbaijan to accept self-determination for the people of Artsakh, and initiate a long-overdue process of transformative justice in the region that allows Armenians and Azeris to voice their historical grievances and find common ground around accountability, peace-building, and human security. The Report uses the United Nations’s Framework of Analysis for Atrocity Crimes to outline and analyze (in detail) the risk factors and indicators for atrocity crimes, with a special focus on the crime of genocide. We have chosen to focus on the crime of genocide because the evidence in this report points to the existence of several serious red flags for genocide, typical genocidal patterns, and evidence of the special intent to commit that crime,” an excerpt from the executive summary of the report reads.

The institute said that the evidence presented in the report suggests that the crime of genocide may already be taking place in the form of the blockade.

“In fact, the evidence presented here suggests that the crime of genocide may already be taking place in the form of the blockade, which is both “Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group” and “[d]eliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part” (paragraphs II.b. and II.c. of the 1948 Genocide Convention). Azerbaijan’s crimes conform to Patterns 5 (Gross human rights violations + mass cultural destruction), 6 (Man-made famine/”Genocide by Attrition”), 7 (Environmental despoliation /”Ecocide” and land alienation), and 9 (Denial and/or prevention of identity) of the Lemkin Institute’s Ten Patterns of Genocide and seem to be headed towards patterns 1 (Gender-neutral mass murder characterized by gendered atrocity) and/or 2 (Mass murder of ‘battle-aged men’ + atrocities against women and children).”

“The deep imbrication of eliminationist anti-Armenian hate within the Aliyev regime and Azerbaijani institutions of government leads us to conclude that Azerbaijan is a genocidal state. This fact must be addressed before there can be any peace in the region,” it added.

The Lemkin Institute for Genocide Prevention warned that “there is alarming evidence that President Aliyev may be planning a military assault on Artsakh in the very near future.”

“A military assault on Artsakh could lead to the mass murder stage of genocide. It would almost assuredly result in the forced displacement of Armenians from Artsakh and the widespread commission of genocidal atrocities, reflecting those committed in the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War of 2020 and subsequent hostilities,” it said.

The Lemkin Institute for Genocide Prevention recommends that members of the international community, including United Nations member states with influence over Azerbaijan, undertake the following actions to prevent the starvation and forced population displacement of Armenians in Artsakh as well as any possible future genocidal assaults on the Armenians of the Republic of Armenia:

  1. Recognize publicly the threat of genocide against Armenians in the Republics of Artsakh and Armenia that is evidenced by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev’s statements as well as the actions of his regime.
  2. Demand the immediate lifting of the blockade and the opening of the Lachin Corridor linking Artsakh both to Armenia and to the outside world, as stipulated in the Tripartite Ceasefire Statement of 9 November 2020 and ordered by the ICJ in February and July of 2023.
  3. Organize an immediate humanitarian airlift to bring aid to the citizens of Artsakh while political deliberations continue.
  4. Actively intervene to defend Artsakh against an armed attack by Azerbaijan in order to prevent a full-scale massacre against Armenians and the many other international crimes usually committed by the Aliyev regime against Armenians.
  5. Empower and fund an independent investigative team to conduct a thorough documentation of the current situation in Artsakh, including an investigation of the atrocities committed by Azerbaijani military personnel in the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War and afterwards.
  6. Utilize all available diplomatic measures, including sanctions and the withdrawal of foreign aid, to challenge the impunity enjoyed by the Aliyev regime in Azerbaijan.
  7. Pressure Azerbaijan to immediately cease its threats against the people of Artsakh and Armenia and institute a domestic National Mechanism to prevent the crime of genocide as a necessary condition for any foreign aid.
  8. Encourage the reform of the Azerbaijani education and security sectors, which are deeply tainted by genocidal Armenophobia.
  9. Support the Armenians of Artsakh with humanitarian and economic aid, particularly funding for destroyed infrastructure, institution-building and democracy-building projects, and increased security sector capacity.
  10. Address the long-standing and underlying core issue of the right to self-determination of the people of Artsakh as a basic principle under international law and in the recognition that, as facts on the ground prove, Armenians are unable to live under the Azerbaijani authority and power.
  11. Recognize the decades-long efforts of the Artsakh people to establish a State according to the international requirements for statehood, which has resulted in the building of a government based on the division of powers and democratic representation.
  12. Lay the groundwork for an eventual restorative and transformative justice process in the region to address past and current grievances and clear the path for a long-lasting peace.

Military attachés accredited in Armenia briefed on situation along border with Azerbaijan

Emil Lazarian

 12:55, 6 September 2023

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 6, ARMENPRESS. Foreign military attachés and representatives accredited in Armenia on Wednesday were briefed by the Armenian Ministry of Defense on the operational situation on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border, the Ministry of Defense said in a statement.

The briefing was held by Levon Ayvazyan, Director of the Defense Policy and International Cooperation Department at the Ministry of Defense.

Ayvazyan said that the Armenian Armed Forces, within their duties, are taking all necessary measures to not allow a further escalation of the situation.

 


Armenian Foreign Minister to visit UAE

Emil Lazarian

 19:25, 6 September 2023

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 6, ARMENPRESS. Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan will travel to the United Arab Emirates on September 7-8 on an official visit, the foreign ministry announced Wednesday.

“On September 7-8, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan will pay an official visit to the United Arab Emirates. Meetings with UAE colleagues are planned,” foreign ministry spokesperson Ani Badalyan said in a statement.

United States tells Azerbaijan to reopen Lachin Corridor

Emil Lazarian

 20:20, 6 September 2023

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 6, ARMENPRESS. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has again called on Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to reopen the Lachin Corridor, the U.S. State Department announced Wednesday in a readout of the call which took place on September 1.

“Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken spoke with Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev on September 1 to express the United States’ concern over the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Nagorno-Karabakh.  He reiterated our call to reopen the Lachin Corridor to humanitarian, commercial, and passenger traffic, while recognizing the importance of additional routes from Azerbaijan.  The Secretary underscored the need for a dialogue and compromise and the importance of building confidence between the parties.  He pledged continued U.S. support to the peace process,” the U.S. State Department said in the readout.

Asbarez: EU Leader Warns Baku that Failure to Resolve Lachin Issue May Affect Ties with Europe

Emil Lazarian
by Asbarez Staff

 

 September 6, 2023

 

in Armenia, Artsakh, Featured Story, Latest, News, Top Stories

EU’s foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell


“The European Union will continue to influence Azerbaijan regarding the need for an urgent solution to the humanitarian situation in Nagorno-Karabakh, as failure to do so properly may have a practical impact on relations with the EU,” the bloc foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell said on Wednesday.

At the same time, Borrell emphasized that the suspension of a memorandum of understanding signed with Azerbaijan on July 18, 2022 on energy exports to the EU “is not currently being considered.”

Borrell’s statement added that the EU continues to closely monitor developments in and around the Lachin corridor and their humanitarian consequences.

Borrell also added that the “EU has repeatedly called to reopen the corridor, and now it continues to actively participate at the highest level in providing assistance to Armenia and Azerbaijan in the work toward mutually acceptable normalization of their relations.”

Armenia to Host Military Drills with U.S.; Russia Voices Concern

Emil Lazarian
by Asbarez Staff

 

 September 6, 2023

 

in Armenia, Artsakh, Featured Story, International, Latest, News, Top Stories

U.S. and Armenian troops interact during military drills in Europe


Armenia announced on Wednesday that it will host joint military exercises with the United States next week and the Kremlin was quick to voice concerns.

Armenia will host what is known as the Eagle Partner 2023 joint Armenia-U.S. military exercises from September 11 to 20, the defense ministry announced on Wednesday, saying that the drills will take place in the “‘Zar’ Training Center of the Peacekeeping Brigade and the N Training Center of the Ministry of Defense.”

“The purpose of the exercise is to increase the level of interoperability of the unit participating in international peacekeeping missions within the framework of peacekeeping operations, to exchange best practices in control and tactical communication, as well as to increase the readiness of the Armenian unit for the planned NATO/PfP [Partnership for Peace] ‘Operational Capabilities Concept’ evaluation,” Armenia’s defense ministry added.

Armenia has been part of the NATO-led peacekeeping operations in Afghanistan and the Balkans.

“Within the framework of preparation for peacekeeping missions, units preparing for international peacekeeping operations frequently participate in similar joint exercises and trainings in partner countries,” the defense ministry added.

A Pentagon spokesperson said Wednesday that the 85 American soldiers and 175 Armenians would take part, Reuters reported. The source said the Americans – including members of the Kansas National Guard which has a 20-year-old training partnership with Armenia – would be armed with rifles and would not be using heavy weaponry.

This announcement about the exercises has raised concerns in the Kremlin, whose spokesperson on Tuesday hit back at Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan for claiming that Armenia’s decades-long alliance with Russia could be deemed a “strategic mistake” and saying that Russia had failed to protect Armenia against attacks from Azerbaijan.

“Of course, such news causes concern, especially in the current situation. Therefore, we will deeply analyse this news and monitor the situation,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, according to Reuters.

Peskov commented on Tuesday about Pashinyan’s assertions, made during an interview with the Italian daily La Repubblica, that because of the Ukraine war Russia was unable to fulfill its security obligations to Armenia and the South Caucasus.

“Russia is an absolutely integral part of this region,” Peskov told reporters Tuesday. “Russia plays a consistent, very important role in stabilizing the situation in this region … and we will continue to play this role.”

It was also telling that the state-sponsored RT news site framed the news as “Russia’s Treaty Partner to Hold Joint Drills with U.S.”

SOS Artsakh protest demands Biden administration take action to end blockade

Emil Lazarian
September 6, 2023 Georgi Bargamian Diaspora 0

Protesters hold letters outside of White House reading, “120,000 Reasons” (Photo: Sona Gevorkian)

Hundreds of protesters took to Washington, D.C.’s streets on Friday, Sept. 1 to kick off the Armenian Revolutionary Federation’s (ARF) “SOS Artsakh” global call to action to demand government intervention to end Azerbaijan’s nearly nine-month blockade of Artsakh.

Marchers of all ages gathered in front of the Renaissance Washington, D.C. Downtown Hotel, the headquarters of the annual AYF Olympics, at 1:30 p.m., to walk to Lafayette Park across from the White House nearly a mile away.

“We are approaching nine months since Azerbaijan began its genocidal blockade of Artsakh. Food shortages across Artsakh, a reported death by starvation, fainting episodes due to waiting for hours in bread lines, water supplies being cut, miscarriages due to bad nutrition, electricity being cut,” said AYF-YOARF Central Executive member Areni Margossian, before leading the marchers toward Lafayette Park.

“For nine months, the international community and the United States along with it have remained largely indifferent, so we gather here today to send an SOS, to make our voices heard, to show our support for Artsakh, show that they are not alone and that we will stop at nothing to fight for the freedom of Artsakh and its security,” Margossian continued.

Protesters carrying signs, banners, and Artsakh and Armenia flags walked down the middle of New York Avenue chanting slogans aimed at U.S. President Joe Biden including, “Biden: Stop the second Armenian Genocide,” “Biden: Break the blockade” and “Biden: End U.S. aid to Azerbaijan.”

Gevik Atakhanian of Cresskill, New Jersey was motivated to march to end the consequences of the ongoing blockade. “We are still suffering, and nobody is doing anything about it,” Atakhanian said. “We have to get our message across somehow. I don’t know how long those people are going to suffer.”

The day before the march, the U.S. State Department issued a press statement on the humanitarian situation in Nagorno-Karabakh. The five-sentence statement conveyed the department’s deep “concern about the deteriorating humanitarian conditions in Nagorno-Karabakh resulting from the continued blockage of food, medicine and other goods essential to a dignified existence.” It included a “call to immediately re-open the Lachin corridor to humanitarian, commercial and passenger traffic.” 

“Officials from Baku and representatives from Stepanakert should convene without delay to agree on the means of transporting critical provisions to the men, women and children of Nagorno-Karabakh – including additional supply routes – and resume discussions on all outstanding issues,” the statement reads. “Additional supply routes” likely refers to Azerbaijan’s proposal to deliver supplies to Artsakh through Aghdam. Artsakh authorities have rejected this offer, stating that it would normalize the continued blockade of the Berdzor (Lachin) Corridor.

ARF Eastern Region Central Committee chair Ani Tchaghlasian responded to the statement’s implication that Artsakh can negotiate with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev’s regime to end the ongoing blockade.

“We do not accept this,” Tchaghlasian said. “President Biden, we are here to tell you – you can stop this genocide. You must stop this genocide. We are here to tell you that we will hold your administration personally responsible for this genocide.”

“Your so-called interests in the South Caucasus do not trump our right to live. They do not trump the right of 30,000 children to live in liberty in their millennia-old homeland. We are here to tell you, this is enough!” Tchaghlasian continued during her speech in front of the White House. 

ANCA executive director Aram Hamparian said that Biden must stop “both-siding genocide.” 

“There is the victim and the aggressor, and Azerbaijan is the guilty party. That’s why our president and State Department are so hell-bent for ‘peace’ that would integrate Artsakh into Azerbaijan, which we all know is a death sentence for the Artsakh population. A genocide. A second genocide. President Biden knows it. Ilham Aliyev knows it. The world sees it, and it is up to us to stop it,” Hamparian said. 

AYF-YOARF Central Executive member Alec Soghomonian also chided the Biden administration for its inaction “at the expense of Armenian lives.” He said the U.S. has “aided and abetted Baku by sending military aid and refusing to enforce Section 907,” referring to the provision in the United States Freedom Support Act which bans direct U.S. military aid to Azerbaijan. 

In 2022, the U.S. Government Accountability Office found that while the State Department has provided certified presidential waivers of Section 907 annually to Congress, it has failed “to provide Congress with all required information – such as the impact of aid on the military balance between Azerbaijan and Armenia.”

Soghomonian rallied the crowd, beseeching, “Act now! Wake up from your complacency! This blockade cannot become the new normal. We have all grown accustomed to chanting, ‘1915 never again!’ Unfortunately, 1915 is here. It is up to us to stop it.”

Speaking on behalf of the Armenian Relief Society, Eastern United States, Karine Shamlian said that schools should have opened for the fall in Artsakh, among them the ARS Sosseh kindergartens which have been closed due to the blockade. “Today, on September 1st, the ARS would have once again opened its doors and welcomed a new generation of students in its kindergartens, as the first day of school would have begun,” Shamlian said. “Unfortunately, kindergartens will have to remain closed, and due to this blockade, we are unable to provide the necessary back-to-school items or even give the access to education, depriving students of a basic human right.”

“It is our moral duty to stand up and advocate for the rights of those who cannot speak for themselves,” Shamlian said. “We must insist that the world does not turn a blind eye to the suffering of the innocent, for silence in the face of injustice is complicity.”

Hamazkayin Eastern United States representative Dr. Aline Baghdassarian also focused on the 30,000 children living under blockade in Artsakh and subjected to the genocide-by-starvation. She expressed hope that “our children will firmly stand on the shoulders of the people who have thrived for millennia.”

“Our children will remain deeply rooted in our faith, our culture, history and struggle for existence and independence. Only then can we build our future on solid ground,” Dr. Baghdassarian said.

The protest included the participation of Archbishop Vicken Aykazian of the Diocese of the Eastern Armenian Apostolic Church of America, as well as Rev. Asadour Minassian of St. Mark Catholic Church, Wynnewood, Penn. and Rev. Hovsep Karapetian of St. Mary Armenian Church, Washington, D.C. After leading the crowd in the Hayr Mer, or the Our Father, Archbishop Aykazian turned his attention to the president of the United States.

Archbishop Vicken Aykazian, Rev. Hovsep Karapetian and Aram Hamparian, pictured l. to r. (Photo: Sona Gevorkian)

“Mr. Biden, do you hear me? I’m sure you hear me. You are the first president of the United States to recognize the Armenian Genocide, for which we are grateful. Mr. President, we beseech you. Please do not foresee the second genocide of the Armenian people, because we will not forget. We will never forget,” Archbishop Aykazian said.

“You have to know that every single Christian church in this country has been standing up and sending letters to the White House, the State Department and many other people,” he added. “They are with us. We are not alone.”

Protesters hold the Armenian flag outside of the White House (Photo: George Aghjayan)

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Georgi Bargamian is a former editor of the Armenian Weekly. After 10 years working in community journalism, she attended law school and is an attorney, but she remains committed to her first love journalism by writing for the Armenian Weekly.


ICRC evacuates 9 patients from blockaded Nagorno-Karabakh

Emil Lazarian

 12:26, 5 September 2023

STEPANAKERT, SEPTEMBER 5, ARMENPRESS. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) on Tuesday facilitated the transfer of 9 patients requiring urgent treatment from blockaded Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh) to Armenia ,the Nagorno-Karabakh healthcare authorities said in a statement.

The ICRC plans to transport another two patients who’ve completed treatment in Armenia back to Nagorno-Karabakh later today.

All patients were accompanied by their attendants.

24 children are hospitalized in the Arevik clinic in Nagorno-Karabakh. 7 of them are in neonatal and intensive care.

Another 90 patients are hospitalized in Nagorno-Karabakh’s Republican Medical Center. 3 are in intensive care (1 is critically-ill.)

Lachin Corridor, the only road connecting Nagorno-Karabakh to Armenia and the rest of the world, has been blocked by Azerbaijan since late 2022. The Azerbaijani blockade constitutes a gross violation of the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh ceasefire agreement, which established that the 5km-wide Lachin Corridor shall be under the control of Russian peacekeepers. Furthermore, on February 22, 2023 the United Nations’ highest court – the International Court of Justice (ICJ) – ordered Azerbaijan to “take all steps at its disposal” to ensure unimpeded movement of persons, vehicles and cargo along the Lachin Corridor in both directions.  Azerbaijan has been ignoring the order ever since. The ICJ reaffirmed its order on 6 July 2023.

Azerbaijan then illegally installed a checkpoint on Lachin Corridor. The blockade has led to shortages of essential products such as food and medication. Azerbaijan has also cut off gas and power supply into Nagorno Karabakh, with officials warning that Baku seeks to commit ethnic cleansing against Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh. Hospitals have suspended normal operations.

Kremlin responds to PM Pashinyan, says no plans to leave South Caucasus

Emil Lazarian

 14:50, 5 September 2023

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 5, ARMENPRESS. Moscow has responded to Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s recent statement that Russia itself is leaving the South Caucasus with its actions or inactions.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, reacting to the statement, said that Moscow has no plans to leave the region.

“We have deep respect for Prime Minister Pashinyan, we appreciate the working and very constructive relations between him and President Putin, but we can’t agree with those narratives. Russia doesn’t plan to go anywhere. Russia continues to play a consistent, very important role in stabilizing the situation and ending the conflict. In this context, what matters is the commitment of all regional countries to the trilateral statements on Nagorno-Karabakh. There’ve been new developments that have somewhat changed the situation, but this doesn’t mean that Russia is somehow deviating from its activity,” Peskov told reporters.

Peskov said that more Armenians live in Russia than in Armenia itself. Mentioning Armenia’s participation in integration processes, Peskov said that “Armenia has become the CIS champion with its pace of development.”