Author: Maral Chavushian

WASHINGTON—House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Eliot Engel and Lead Republican Michael McCaul have released a statement on their deep concern over Turkey’s actions under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan that endanger the NATO alliance, the broader region, and democracy and the rule of law in Turkey.

“We are gravely concerned by the threat Turkey’s increasingly provocative behavior poses to our decades-long bilateral relationship, to the NATO alliance, and to the region more broadly,” said Engel and McCaul.

While we continue to see real value in a strong U.S.-Turkey relationship, its destabilizing actions need to be more strongly addressed and the United States must work with its European and NATO allies and partners to continue to use all of the tools at their disposal to demand that Turkey reverse course. We strongly urge President Erdogan to put an end to Turkey’s provocative behavior so the United States and Turkey can once again enjoy a close and cooperative relationship built on mutual security interests, a strong commitment to NATO, and shared democratic values,” added the two Foreign Affairs Committee leaders.

“House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Eliot Engel and Lead Republican Michael McCaul unnecessarily hedge their criticism of Turkey by using the word ‘reportedly’ to qualify Turkey’s well-documented recruitment of foreign terrorist fighters to attack Artsakh,” said Armenian National Committee America Executive Director Aram Hamparian.

“Sadly, the rest of this statement – which does raise a series of very troubling Turkish offenses – is framed in terms of bringing Turkey back into the NATO fold – years after Erdogan stormed away from the alliance.  This fundamentally mistaken mindset among U.S. policy-makers must end. Turkey today is not an ally to be managed – with relentless excuses and endless appeasement – but rather an openly announced adversary that must be forcefully and firmly confronted,” added Hamparian.

Recent actions of concern by Turkey under President Erdogan include:

• President Erdogan’s acquisition of the Russian S-400 missile defense system compromises NATO interoperability and undermines the alliance’s collective defense pledge, which demands our militaries and armaments can work together in the face of the threat posed by Russia. It also allows Vladimir Putin to continue to sow division in the alliance.
• Turkey’s military operation in northeast Syria risked reversing critical gains by the United States and our local partners in the ongoing counter-ISIS fight and exacerbated the existing humanitarian crisis. Even now, Turkish-supported groups in northern Syria are accused of committing egregious human rights violations.
• President Erdogan has also fanned the flames of other global conflicts, reportedly sending Syrian mercenaries to Libya and Nagorno-Karabakh.
• In the Eastern Mediterranean, Turkey has surveyed for hydrocarbon resources in disputed waters also claimed by Greece, a NATO member, and Cyprus, a key transatlantic partner and EU member.
• Erdogan has openly hosted Hamas terrorists in Turkey, including individuals designated by the United States for their terrorist activities.
• At home, Erdogan’s government has undermined Turkey’s democratic institutions by consolidating his own power, undermining the independence of Turkey’s judiciary, and rolling back the democratic rights and freedoms of the Turkish people, including by targeting locally-employed staff at U.S. Consulates with baseless criminal charges.

The Socialist International Committee for the CIS, the Caucasus and the Black Sea held an online meeting on Saturday with the participation of member parties from countries across the region. Included in the agenda of the meeting was discussion about the Artsakh war and Azerbaijan’s aggression toward Armenians.

On the theme of peace and conflict resolution, significant attention was given to the recent conflict in the South Caucasus, and the meeting listened to the perspectives of participants from both Armenia and Azerbaijan on this subject.

Shaghig Maroukhian, a member of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation Supreme Council of Armenia described the actions of Azerbaijan as a large scale aggression planned and coordinated with military and political support from Turkey. She called the attacks a blatant violation of the 1994 ceasefire agreement.

She accused the government of Azerbaijan of recruiting terrorist mercenaries from Syria and Libya, and of immediately violating two ceasefires agreed during October. The ARF called into question the November 10 ceasefire agreement and supported protests against the Armenian prime minister and the installation of an interim government.

ARF representative and SI Vice-President Mario Nalpatian considered that a just peace had not been reached, but outlined his party’s commitment to the values and principles of the SI and readiness to work toward fulfilling those goals in the South Caucasus.

Araz Alizadeh, co-chair of the committee and leader of the Social Democratic Party of Azerbaijan described the conflict as a “patriotic war which all Azeri political parties had supported, resulting in Armenian forces leaving territory they had occupied for the first time since 1993.”

Responding to reports of Turkish involvement in the war, he denied the presence of Turkish armed forces in Azerbaijan. His position was that Azerbaijan had not at any point attacked the territory of Armenia. He also claimed that his party did not want war.

In remarks on the resolution of conflicts, SI Vice-President Alexander Romanovich of the Just Russia party highlighted the personal role of the leaders of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia in reaching a ceasefire agreement. He regretted the number of on-going conflicts in the CIS, referring to the situations in Moldova and Ukraine, and expressed his belief that conflicts could only be solved through negotiations with international support from the United Nations.

The SI meeting also discussed the global COVID-19 pandemic and the response in the regions covered by the committee, as well as tensions in Belarus, Transnistria and Kazakhstan.

In concluding remarks, SI secretary general Luis Ayala underlined that the SI had made the resolution of conflicts a part of its identity everywhere and would continue to bring together its member parties in search of common ground, compromise and cooperation. Democracy continued to be a major challenge in the region, he said.

He considered that as a political family the SI is truly involved in this region and is getting results. He paid tribute to social democrats across the region who were working for democracy and progress, improving the situation with hard work and perseverance, and expressed his pride that members of this political family were at the forefront of these efforts.

BY ZEPYUR KASPARIAN

For 44 days, my life came to a standstill. Every single Armenian, no matter where they were in the world, was constantly reloading every single news and social media app on their phones, awaiting updates on the war in Artsakh and seeking current information about the political situation in Armenia.

As a senior in high school, I log onto my zoom classes. My teachers mark me as present-but I am present only physically. My heart, mind, and soul are thousands of miles away in an ethereal land called Artsakh.

An unknown Diasporan Armenian writer said this and captured my feelings perfectly. “Diasporan Paralysis: When you are living abroad, but your country is at war. When you are far from physical harm, but mentally broken. When you are doing everything you can, but you feel it’s never enough. When you are paralyzed; unable to think or talk of anything else because your body is in one place and your soul in another”.

After 44 days of war, Armenian communities all over the world received the most devastating news. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan revealed that he signed a humiliating agreement with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to end the war in Artsakh. This agreement has resulted in Armenia surrendering at least half of Artsakh’s land, including the regions of Akn, Berdzor, and Qaravjar, (where many historical Armenian sites are located) to Azerbaijan.

Upon hearing this news, I became confused, angry, depressed, frustrated, and everything in between. I have never felt pain like this in my life before. The life of each soldier is more precious than gold for us. But I had told myself that if it takes the sacrifice of brave warriors to protect our lands, so be it. But now, a great amount of those lands are gone. What did our heroes die for then?

All I know is that I will always remember Artsakh and our eternal martyrs. I will continue to fight for our rights until my last breath. You can’t separate me from my Armenian identity! My dear Armenian brothers and sisters, whether you live in Armenia, Artsakh, or the Diaspora-this message is for you. An agreement has been signed but this war is not over. There is no such thing as a peace deal between genocidal states and their victims. Aliyev won’t stop until he has Stepanakert and Erdogan won’t stop until he has Yerevan. Therefore, our struggle is far from over. Armenians United, we’ll never be divided. Our unity is needed now more than ever. It is imperative that we stay united if we are to support Armenia.

Our future lies in our youth. We must empower our younger generation living in the Diaspora to learn their language, history, culture, and religion and to always be ready to help their motherland. Most importantly, we must always support our youth living in Armenia and Artsakh. Together, we can create a new, prosperous Armenia.

For all those who sacrificed their lives for Artsakh and our homeland—brave heroes like Monte Melkonian, Tatul Krpeyan, Bedo Ghevondian, Kevork Hajian, Krikor Ghazaryan, Hayk Sahakyan, and so many others… Rest assured that your sacrifices were not in vain. A new generation of courageous warriors will soon follow in your footsteps and raise the Armenian flag over our sacred ancestral lands once again.