Author: Shushan Frangulian

Azerbaijan Reaffirms Stance on Kashmir, Expresses Concern Over India-Armenia Defense Ties

Shushan Frangulian
bnn
HongKong – Dec 21 2023

By: Safak Costu

In an emphatic statement, Ashraf Shikhaliev, the former Azerbaijani ambassador to India, reiterated Azerbaijan’s unwavering position on the long-standing Kashmir issue. Shikhaliev stressed the need for a peaceful resolution, in accordance with international law and the resolutions of the United Nations Security Council. This stance, he underscored, has not wavered in the last 30 years.

Shikhaliev also shed light on the burgeoning defense ties between India and Armenia. He noted that since 2020, Indian state and private defense companies have started supplying Armenia with weapons. The arsenal includes radar systems, multiple rocket launch systems (MRLS), and ammunition. Media reports suggest Armenia’s interest in purchasing missiles and drones from India. These revelations have sparked a wave of concern.

Shikhaliev expressed apprehension that the sale of weapons to Armenia by the Indian government could potentially fuel revanchist forces in Yerevan. The added instability could jeopardize the already fragile peace in the region. He urged the Indian government to reconsider its arms sales to Armenia, cautioning about the potential aftermath.

On another front, Maria Zakharova, the Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman, criticized the European Union’s role in the normalization of relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia. She accused the EU of having a primary objective of taking an anti-Russian stance, rather than settling and normalizing relations between the two nations or addressing the consequences of the longstanding crisis. She also questioned the sudden appearance and disappearance of Azerbaijan and Armenia from the EU’s list of countries supporting the extension of the European Magnitsky List.

The pope again appears to accuse Israel of terrorism

Shushan Frangulian
Dec 20 2023

( / JNS)

Pope Francis has repeatedly called on Israel to lay down arms in its defensive war against Hamas, whose Oct. 7 terrorist attack was the bloodiest day for Jews since the Holocaust.

It’s “forbidden to respond to terror with terror,” the pontiff reportedly told Israeli President Isaac Herzog last month. On Sunday, the pope said, “Some say, ‘This is terrorism and war.’ Yes, it is war. It is terrorism.”

The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, which is based in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, stated on Dec. 16 that an Israeli sniper “murdered” two Christian women in a Gaza church. “No warning was given, no notification was provided,” it said. “They were shot in cold blood inside the premises of the parish, where there are no belligerents.”

On Oct. 7, the patriarchate blamed Israel for being a victim. “The cycle of violence that has killed numerous Palestinians and Israelis in the past months has exploded this morning, Saturday Oct. 7, 2023,” it posted. “The operation launched from Gaza and the reaction of the Israeli Army are bringing us back to the worst periods of our recent history.”

It also called for “the international community” to “de-escalate” the situation and for a ceasefire and for negotiation of peace.

In some of the worst periods in less recent history than what the patriarchate referenced, the Catholic Church is accused of turning a blind eye to Nazi atrocities and it murdered and oppressed Jews over many centuries.

“My conscience and moral duty require me to state clearly that what happened on Oct. 7 in southern Israel is in no way permissible and we cannot but condemn it. There is no reason for such an atrocity,” Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem, wrote in an Oct. 24 letter to the diocese which now yields an error message.

“The same conscience, however, with a great burden on my heart, leads me to state with equal clarity today that this new cycle of violence has brought to Gaza over 5,000, including many women and children, tens of thousands of wounded, neighborhoods razed to the ground, lack of medicine, lack of water and of basic necessities for over 2 million people,” he added. “These are tragedies that cannot be understood and which we have a duty to denounce and condemn unreservedly.”

He added that “It is only by ending decades of occupation and its tragic consequences, as well as giving a clear and secure national perspective to the Palestinian people that a serious peace process can begin. Unless this problem is solved at its root, there will never be the stability we all hope for.” (He also referred to “the Queen of Palestine.”)

Warren Goldstein, chief rabbi of The Union of Orthodox Synagogues of South Africa, said that the pope’s recent comment that it is “forbidden to respond to terror with terror” compares “Israel’s just war of self-defense to the barbarism of Hamas.” In so doing, the pope “repeats the sins of Pope Pius the XII, from the Nazi era, of surreptitiously supporting the forces of evil who seek to annihilate the Jewish people,” Goldstein said.

“If Israel’s war is not just, then there has never been a just war,” he added. (He noted a Dec. 13 Wall Street Journal article, in which David Rivkin and Peter Berkowitz note the pope’s “primitive pacifism,” and that the “Catholic Church developed just-war theory, but the pontiff doesn’t seem to understand it.”)

“It is a matter of public record that the IDF has done more in this war and previous wars to minimize civilian casualties than any other army in recorded history,” Goldstein said. “International law accepts, unequivocally, that even a just war can, and inevitably will, result in civilian casualties.”

Pope Pius XII, prior to his papacy, was the Vatican ambassador to Nazi Germany and was “at the very least a passive bystander to the Holocaust, if not an active supporter,” Goldstein said.

“Pope Francis, I turn to you and say: ‘God has given you an historic opportunity to atone for the sins of Pope Pius XII and the Catholic Church, during the Holocaust,” he added.

“Pope Francis, to repent on behalf of the Catholic Church, you must not stand by as a passive bystander like Pope Pius did during the first Holocaust, while Iran seeks to perpetrate a second one,” he said.

https://www.jns.org/the-pope-again-appears-to-accuse-israel-of-terrorism/

Estonian FM vows to start process of official recognition of Armenian Genocide

Shushan Frangulian

 15:28, 13 December 2023

YEREVAN, DECEMBER 13, ARMENPRESS. Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna has vowed to start a process of official recognition of the Armenian Genocide in the Estonian parliament.

“On a meeting with Armenian foreign minister Ararat Mirzoyan I emphazised that it’s Estonian dept to Armenia that we haven’t recognized genocide against Armenian people & I will start the process in Estonian parliament,” Tsahkna said in a post on X.

Margus Tsahkna visited the Tsitsernakaberd Armenian Genocide Memorial in Yerevan on December 13.

Photos by Hayk Harutyunyan




Balance of power in South Caucasus still shifting after Karabakh collapse

Shushan Frangulian
Dec 14 2023
By Zachary Weiss in Tbilisi 

Azerbaijan’s September 2023 offensive into Nagono-Karabakh only lasted two days, but the repercussions of the conflict have shifted the balance of power in the South Caucasus. Armenia and Azerbaijan have different military equipment, regional territory, and international relationships since the offensive began that will shape the future of the conflict. Some experts predict that more war could now follow.

Leonid Nersisyan, a defence and political analyst at the Applied Policy Research Institute of Armenia, called Armenia’s reduced military means following the conflict “a painful loss,” that could have significant implications for a future conflict. 

“After the Nagorno-Karabakh armed forces were disbanded, all the equipment they had was handed either to Azerbaijani troops or to Russian peacekeepers.” He continued: “Equipment wise, that’s a big loss because there were several dozen tanks and artillery pieces and some air defence assets, too. The personnel in general are withdrawn to Armenia, except a few commanders who were arrested by Azerbaijanis and taken to Baku.”

In the short Azerbaijani offensive, Armenia lost hundreds of fighters, four tanks, numerous armoured fighting vehicles, 29 towed artillery, four command posts and stations, and more anti-aircraft guns and missiles, according to Oryx, a defence analysis site. For a small nation that relies on military equipment shipments that have been crucial for its defence, the loss of fighters and equipment is significant. Azerbaijan, on the other hand, had minimal equipment losses, losing one tank and one truck.

The Artsakh Defence Army used to function as a buffer between Azerbaijan and Armenia proper, which Nersisyan noted was important for Armenia’s defence. The army was disbanded following Azerbaijan’s takeover of Karabakh, a condition set by Azerbaijan for the war to end.

“There is no Nagorno-Karabakh Defence Army, so that equipment withdrawn to Armenia would have even boosted up the capacity to defend Armenia’s proper territory.” Instead, the forces gave up their weapons to Russian peacekeepers, as the peace agreement outlined.

Not only did Azerbaijan’s military reduce the power and territory of Armenia, but it is also in a stronger position to attack Armenia again, according to Nersisyan. He noted, “They don't have any enemy in their rear anymore.” Now, Azerbaijan can build military bases and position equipment in Karabakh territory.

Changing partners

Azerbaijan and Armenia’s international partnerships could also shift Armenia’s ability to defend itself and the viability of a future Azerbaijani attack, to varying degrees. Nersisyan predicted that the roles of several foreign nations serving as arms exporters and consultants to Azerbaijan would not change, but Armenia’s international relations related to its own defence has already shifted more drastically. 

Nersisyan noted that Armenia had received the vast majority of its arms from Russia after several defence contracts were signed in the years before the 2023 conflict, but Russia was not adhering to its own agreement – due to its own military constraints in Ukraine. In November 2023, Pashinyan publicly accused Russia of keeping weapons that Armenia had already paid for, and said that relying on Russia as a defensive partner had been a mistake.

Azerbaijan, on the other hand, receives arms exports and consulting from Israel and Turkey, which is unlikely to change as a result of the September conflict and its aftermath. Israel sold Azerbaijan Barak-8 surface-to-air missile systems, which were tested just a month before Azerbaijan’s offensive into Karabakh. In early December, Azerbaijan purchased the Barak MX air defence system, which is capable of launching missiles 35, 70, and 150 kilometres. It was a continuation of Israeli arms sales of Barak weapons to Azerbaijan, which began in 2012 with a $1.6 billion contract that included the sale of Barak-8 missiles in 2016. 

Armenia is also preparing its military for more conflict. According to Nersisyan, Armenia is now looking to India as “the biggest Armenian partner in defence” in light of Russia’s absence. In November, it was reported that the Indian company Indian Munitions Limited would supply 150,000 grenade units to Armenia. India also plans to supply Armenia with 90 advanced towed artillery gun howitzers over the next three years as part of a $155.5 agreement, six of which were already sent.

Second is France, a newer partner, which has already begun its shipments of armoured vehicles and radar technology. Nersisyan also noted that the European Union could provide Armenia with non-lethal military aid. Josip Borrel, the European Union’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs, noted in November that the European Union must “be very much vigilant for any attempts of destabilisation of Armenia, internally and externally”. The European Union’s Council of Foreign Ministers agreed to consider supplying Armenia with military aid as a part of its military assistance programme. Although Armenia has previously been denied military assistance from the European Union, Azerbaijan’s attack has highlighted the necessity of better Armenian defence.

While both Azerbaijan and Armenia replenish and improve military armaments for future conflict, Nersisyan believes that conflict could realistically spike again, most likely on a small scale that would only last a few days. He believes Azerbaijan could start another conflict to push Armenia to make arms concessions, which would be unlikely to trigger as wide an international response as the September conflict.

Azerbaijan could also use its superior military positioning to push for control of the road connecting Azerbaijan to its exclave territory, wanting access without customs checks and with Russian troops guarding it. Lastly, Azerbaijan could restart their attacks to regain old Soviet Azerbaijani enclaves within Armenian territory.

More optimistically, Nersisyan says a large-scale attack similar in scale to Azerbaijan’s September 2023 offensive was possible but unlikely.

Does the EU have any strategy in the South Caucasus?

Shushan Frangulian
 Yeghia Tashjian Tashjian's Take, Columns 0

Head of the EU Delegation Ambassador Vassilis Maragos (seated left) and Deputy Foreign Minister of Armenia Paruyr Hovhannisyan (seated right) at the signing of the agreement between the Republic of Armenia and the EU on the Status of EUMA (SOMA), Nov. 20, 2023 (EUMA, X, formerly Twitter)

From November 27-29, 2023, a delegation of the European External Action Service (EEAS) and the European Commission visited Yerevan. The EU Delegation to Armenia said the purpose of the trip was to “explore possibilities to deepen and strengthen EU-Armenia relations.” Ideas were exchanged on “how to best leverage investments to address the immediate needs and enable integration of displaced Karabakh Armenians.” They agreed to “explore areas to strengthen cooperation between the EU’s Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex) and Armenia” and continue dialogue on matters of security and defense, such as the EU’s promise to explore non-lethal support to the Armenian military via the European Peace Facility. The EU representatives announced their support for the “normalization of relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan based on the principles of mutual recognition of territorial integrity and inviolability of borders based on the 1991 Almaty Declaration.”

Despite the outreach of the EU to Yerevan, it is still unclear whether the EU has a clear and unified strategy or vision for the future of the South Caucasus. Do the three states in the region have any future in the EU? Is the EU aiming to replace Russia in the region? Do the Europeans have an agenda when it comes to the Armenia-Azerbaijan peace agreement? These are important questions that need to be addressed when assessing the EU’s political and economic role in the region. Despite Russia’s efforts to sideline the West following the November 10, 2020 trilateral ceasefire statement, Azerbaijani incursions in Armenia and Russia’s inability to address Armenia’s security needs pushed the latter to seek the help of new partners. It is within this context that the EU deployed a monitoring mission on the Armenia-Azerbaijan border after the September 2022 escalation, thus becoming a peace facilitator in the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict and a proactive player in the region. European think tanks started addressing some of these questions and proposing certain recommendations. In this article, I will highlight two important publications and summarize their recommendations related to Armenia and the region.

Objectives the EU should pursue in the South Caucasus

In March 2023, the Netherlands Institute for International Relations published a report titled, “The EU in the South Caucasus: Navigating a geopolitical labyrinth in turmoil.” The report argued that the EU should “develop and implement a more holistic strategic vision, both for the region and for its relations with the individual countries.” To fulfill this strategic vision, the report proposes that the EU adopt four parallel objectives that it should pursue in the South Caucasus: (1) exporting European values on good governance, democracy and human rights; (2) promoting regional stability and security; (3) expanding security, energy and trade interests; and (4) containing or even pushing back Russian influence. 

The report mentions that certain obstacles may arise in fulfilling these objectives. First, Moscow, although its “credibility as a security provider and its popularity in Armenia have shriveled,” tries to push the EU and the West out of any peace settlement process. Second, the issue of the establishment of a transport connection between Azerbaijan and its exclave Nakhichevan raises security concerns for Armenia, as Baku demands an extraterritorial corridor. A third obstacle is the demarcation and delimitation of the Armenian-Azerbaijani border and the withdrawal of Azerbaijani troops from Armenia’s sovereign territory. Finally, there is the issue of the rights and the future of the Armenians of Artsakh, which is no longer a priority for Yerevan, Moscow and the West after Azerbaijan engaged in a military operation that forced the Artsakh leadership to capitulate and the population to flee to Armenia, fearing massacre.

On the geopolitical role of the EU, the report mentions several recommendations:

  • The EU should have a clear focus on the security dimension as well as the (geo)political, economic and normative dimensions of the region and strengthen its presence in the three countries.
  • The EU should continue to “invest in both the construction and security of transport and energy connection.” Within this context, the “Middle Corridor” is mentioned as an important transit route connecting the Caspian Sea via Azerbaijani and Georgia to Turkey and Europe, increasing trade between China, Central Asia and Europe. Certain concerns were raised that Russia would engage in sabotage activities against this route. 
  • The EU should avoid “both-sideism,” deter Azerbaijani efforts to impose a peace treaty on Armenia under military pressure and demand the withdrawal of Azerbaijani troops from Armenian territory. 
  • The EU should ensure that “Armenia duly implements the commitments it has undertaken regarding the transport connection from Azerbaijan proper to Nakhichevan.” The report mentions that the EU has an interest in its realization, not only because it unlocks the communication transport channels between Yerevan and Baku, but also because it would strengthen the Middle Corridor trade and lead to a normalization process between Ankara and Yerevan, thus opening their shared border.
  • The EU Mission in Armenia (EUMA) should be “endowed with sufficient resources and flexibility to fulfill its mandate.” The EU should make clear to Baku that the EUMA is an essential part of the peace process and encourage Baku to not only accept but also cooperate with the Mission, ideally “by allowing it to have access to the Azerbaijani side of the border.”
  • When it comes to Artsakh, the paper recommended that the EU should press Baku to offer a credible and internationally monitored arrangement to the Armenians of the region, aiming to guarantee their rights and security within the context of “minority rights.” (The paper was published months before the September 2023 escalation and depopulation of the Armenians of Artsakh.)
  • Finally, the report recommends that the EU should make a long-term investment in Armenia and engage in structural reforms to strengthen its democratic institutions and resilience. The report recognizes that in the short-term, Yerevan’s political and economic dependence will not decrease, and the EU must “manage Armenian expectations in this regard,” but it “can and should play a long game here (in the region).”

Three ways the EU can strengthen Armenia’s resilience

In November 2023, the European Council on Foreign Relations published “After Nagorno-Karabakh: How Europeans can strengthen Armenia’s resilience.” Marie Dumoulin and Gustav Gressel argue that even though Azerbaijan has captured Artsakh, security concerns in the South Caucasus are far from over, as Azerbaijan continues to push irredentist claims over Armenia. The authors say that the establishment of a land corridor through Armenia’s Syunik province, whether under the control of Russia or Azerbaijan, poses significant risks for Europe, as Ankara and Baku, with the support of Moscow, would control all the transit routes connecting Europe to Central Asia and China. To mitigate this threat, they suggest three ways that the EU can strengthen Armenia’s resilience. 

The first suggestion is that the EU should prevent further military escalations between Armenia and Azerbaijan. For this purpose, the EU should engage in high-level political engagement with Yerevan to show that it cares about Armenia. At the same time, it should engage with Ankara and Baku to minimize tensions and warn the Azerbaijani government that any possible attack would have consequences. To consolidate its active role in the region, the EUMA should extend its mandate and be equipped with the tools to better detect ceasefire violations. The authors welcomed the decision of the EU Foreign Affairs Council in November 2023 to increase the number of monitors.  

The second suggestion is to strengthen Armenia’s defense capabilities. The authors suggest that the EU should be open to using the European Peace Facility (an off-budget instrument to enhance the EU’s ability to prevent conflicts and build peace and security) to equip the Armenian army. It is important to engage with Georgia to facilitate the arms flow to Armenia. EU member states can also assist Yerevan in engaging in military reforms in the sectors of military logistics, training and education. Finally, engagement in strategic consultation with India and other partners is important to provide heavy arms to Armenia so that the latter can withstand future Azerbaijani attacks. 

Finally, the EU must support a peace settlement between Armenia and Azerbaijan. The authors argue that since Artsakh is no longer a part of the negotiations, “mediation should aim for an agreement on the delimitation and opening of borders,” including the Armenia-Turkey border. Regarding a transit route connecting Azerbaijan and Nakhichevan, the report concludes that as part of the future peace plan, the EU should offer investment opportunities and technical support to facilitate transit and connectivity. The authors say that the issue of Artsakh is “lost but suggest that the EU provide humanitarian aid to the Armenian refugees and help their “integration” into the Armenian society, to “ensure future domestic political stability in the medium and long term,” thus closing the issue of the right of return of Armenians of Artsakh. 

Importantly, the article says that the EU needs to convince the “Armenians not to have too many expectations, and Europe must refrain from making unachievable promises,” adding that the EU cannot “make Iran, Russia, Turkey and Azerbaijan go away—nor will it completely replace them.” Yet the EU can support Armenia to balance its interests without making painful compromises and prevent it from being fully dependent on a single regional power. 

To sum up, the recent publications and academic debates show that the EU is an active player in the South Caucasus. While the EU aims to minimize Russia’s influence in the region, the EU will not be able to replace Russia in the near future by exercising soft power (such as economic incentives or mediation), as long as it does not deploy leverage to push Baku to sign a peace treaty with Yerevan. For the EU, the issue of Artsakh, which was seen as one of the main obstacles to signing a peace treaty, is resolved. Following the loss of Artsakh, the EU is pressuring Baku to fulfill its obligations and accept the EU’s role in the region as a key mediating player. The question is to what extent the EU’s strategy will work, amid the exclusion of other key regional actors such as Turkey and Iran. The geography and cultures of the South Caucasus are unique compared to other conflicts in Europe’s neighborhood, such as in Eastern Europe. Policymakers must be aware that the South Caucasus is bordered by Iran, Turkey and Russia, and extra-regional actors such as China and India also have a share in this competition and in shaping the regional dynamics. Hence, for a stable and secure region, any peace process must be holistic, realistic and proportionally acceptable to the key actors.

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Yeghia Tashjian is a regional analyst and researcher. He has graduated from the American University of Beirut in Public Policy and International Affairs. He pursued his BA at Haigazian University in political science in 2013. In 2010, he founded the New Eastern Politics forum/blog. He was a research assistant at the Armenian Diaspora Research Center at Haigazian University. Currently, he is the regional officer of Women in War, a gender-based think tank. He has participated in international conferences in Frankfurt, Vienna, Uppsala, New Delhi and Yerevan. He has presented various topics from minority rights to regional security issues. His thesis topic was on China’s geopolitical and energy security interests in Iran and the Persian Gulf. He is a contributor to various local and regional newspapers and a presenter of the “Turkey Today” program for Radio Voice of Van. Recently he has been appointed as associate fellow at the Issam Fares Institute for Public Policy and International Affairs at the American University of Beirut and Middle East-South Caucasus expert in the European Geopolitical Forum.


As India & France Arm Armenia, Turkey Slams Military Powers That Are Supporting Yerevan

Shushan Frangulian
Eurasian Times
Dec 8 2023
By Sakshi Tiwari

December 8, 2023

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In a strong rebuttal against the French military and other supporters of Armenia, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan described the plan to arm Armenia as provocative. 

“What France is doing is a provocation. It should know that it is not doing Armenia a favor but the opposite. France has given Armenia a lot of support in the past. What result did they get? None,” Erdogan was quoted as saying.

The statement comes at a time when Azerbaijan and Armenia have agreed to build confidence and mutually work towards a peace deal. For this, the two sides have agreed to exchange prisoners of war (POWs) taken during the recent hostilities in the Nogorono-Karabakh region.

However, the military partnership forged between France and Armenia has not gone down well with Turkey. Firing his verbal shots, Erdogan emphasized that France was part of the now Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Minsk Group on Nagorno-Karabakh, which works towards ensuring a peaceful resolution of conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

“There is no result [from the group’s work], and in such a situation, it provokes Armenia again. There will be no result from sending armored personnel carriers [there]. Because now, there is Azerbaijan, which has ended the occupation of its territory. The result of the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh is obvious,” Erdogan said without mincing words.

He further added, “The Armenian leadership should learn the lessons of the recent past and not go for these provocations. It is in Armenia’s interest to seize the opportunity for peace and not to fall into the trap of countries that mislead Armenia. Peaceful relations with Azerbaijan is the best option for Armenia. Those who put weapons in Armenia’s hands are doing Armenia a disservice.”

Earlier, Erdogan had chastised Western nations harshly for arming Armenia, though he did not name them. He also urged Armenia to expeditiously conclude a peace accord with Azerbaijan. The statement made by Erdogan is significant, given that Ankara has been arming Baku to the teeth in its fight against Yerevan.

Having said that, Erdogan may not be the only one who has been displeased with French military assistance to Armenia. Earlier this week, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said at a press briefing that the French Bastion armored vehicles that are being transferred to Armenia will not help the country.

“As for France and these Bastion armored vehicles – they are illiquid. This is obvious even from the situation unfolding in the context of the special military operation, I commented on this in detail at the briefing on November 22,” she said. This follows complaints that Russia, which is the primary ally of Armenia, hasn’t been able to deliver the ordered arms despite the purchase going through.

“Now, regarding that statement of the Armenian Defense Ministry that you quoted about the need to solve problems in concert, we can only welcome this. As [we] understand, the Russian Defense Ministry has a similar mindset,” she said.

However, the vacuum left by Russian arms has essentially been filled by countries like France and India, who have stepped up to arm Armenia in what has been seen as a reset in their respective foreign policies.

Armenia has been seeking to diversify its arms imports and find new allies after Russia failed to provide the country with ordered weapons worth around US $400 million. This has forced the country to seek other viable options to procure its military supplies.

French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna, during her visit to Armenia’s capital, Yerevan, on October 3, said: “France has given its consent to sign a future contract with Armenia, which will enable the provision of military equipment to Armenia so that Armenia can ensure its defense, it is clear that I cannot elaborate on this issue for now.”

As part of the strengthening military relations between the two countries, parliamentarians in France have announced that they will be sending 50 Bastion armored personnel carriers to Armenia. Although no delivery has been confirmed by Yerevan, the Armenian news site Armenpress reported earlier this week that France had already delivered 24 Bastion armored vehicles.

In one of the agreements signed between France and Armenia, the latter is also anticipated to buy three air defense radar systems from Thales, a French defense company. Not just that, the two sides also signed a “letter of intent” on the future delivery of Mistral short-range surface-to-air missiles.

According to France’s Ministry of the Armed Forces, a second contract was for Yerevan to acquire night vision goggles and equipment manufactured by Safran.

A report published in local French media also indicated that France could supply 50 VAB MK3 armored vehicles manufactured by Renault Trucks Defense. It provides armed forces with high-level protection and multi-mission capabilities.

Meanwhile, in 2022, India inked the deal to supply PINAKA multi-barrel rocket launchers (MBRL), anti-tank munitions, and ammunition worth US $250 million to Armenia; it was seen as New Delhi taking a position in the conflict. It was the first export of PINAKA by India.

As previously reported by EurAsian Times, Armenia also contracted to buy India-developed Zen Anti-Drone System (ZADS), which is a Counter Unmanned Aerial System (CUAS).

This would come in handy for Yerevan’s forces, which are often fighting the cutting-edge Turkish drones like the TB2 Bayraktar that Baku has extensively deployed in the conflict.

In a recent statement, President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan issued a warning to France and India, stating that arming Armenia with weaponry he considers dangerous could lead to the outbreak of a new conflict in the region.

Azerbaijan “will have to react to protect its people” should Armenia start receiving “serious installations” from France and India, Aliyev told a conference in Baku, saying he’d already given advance warning to “everybody.

Peaceful coexistence and international grievances: Understanding Jewish-Armenian relations

Shushan Frangulian
eurasianet
Nov 30 2023
Arpine Hovhannisyan Nov 30, 2023

Israeli weapons played a pivotal role in Azerbaijan's defeat of Armenia in the 2020 Second Karabakh War.

Same with Baku's military takeover of Nagorno-Karabakh two months ago that triggered the exodus of the region's entire Armenian population. 

And a property dispute in Jerusalem threatens to undermine Armenians' roughly 1,600-year-long presence in the Holy Land.

Against that background, a series of acts of vandalism against the country's lone synagogue led to talk – particularly in Azerbaijan – about a possible rise of anti-Semitism in Armenia. 

Members of Yerevan's small Jewish community categorically reject this notion. They see the attacks as aimed at discrediting their chosen country of residence. 

Synagogue attacks

One of the first attacks on the Jewish Mordechai Navi Synagogue in Yerevan took place on October 3. It did little physical damage as a Molotov cocktail hurled into the synagogue failed to ignite. 

But it did prompt one of the most senior rabbis in Azerbaijan, Armenia's archrival and neighbor, to declare the country unsafe for Jews. 

"I repeat my call to the Jews in Armenia: Leave, and if you need help, I'll take care of it.  Leave before it's too late…" Rabbi Zamir Isayev, head of the Baku Jewish School, posted on X. 

In another attack on November 15, an unknown person set fire to the doors on the first and second floors of the building.

Video of the attack, alongside a claim of responsibility for both attacks appeared on a small and newly created Telegram channel whose name suggested affiliation to the Armenian Secret Army for the Liberation of Armenia (ASALA), a now largely inactive militant group. ASALA representatives denied any involvement. 

The video quickly found traction among Azerbaijani social media accounts, which proclaimed Armenia a den of anti-Semitism. 

Armenia's Investigative Committee reported two days later that the culprit was a citizen of a foreign country who left Armenia immediately after the attack. It gave no further information.

Gershon Meir Burstein, Armenia's chief rabbi, told CivilNet that the attacks were acts of "provocation" rather than an _expression_ of Armenian anti-Semitism.  

Nathaniel Trubkin, a prominent member of Yerevan's Jewish community, echoed that sentiment in an interview with Eurasianet. 

"The attack on the synagogue was not against Jews, but against Armenia's image of a tolerant country," he said.

Trubkin is one of several hundred Jews who moved to Armenia from Russia at the beginning of the Russian-Ukrainian War. He is the art director at Mamajan, a cafe in Yerevan that has become a center of Jewish community activities. He also runs Yerevan Jewish Home, a group that helps Jews moving to the city find housing and grapple with local bureaucracy. 

There is widespread resentment in Armenia against Israel, which, according to estimates cited by AP, provided 70 per cent of the weapons Azerbaijan acquired between 2016 and 2020. 

And Israel's offensive on Gaza following the Hamas attacks on Israeli civilian targets on October 7 has given rise to further expressions of anti-Israeli sentiment on Armenian social media. 

But Trubkin says none of that has translated into anti-Semitism: "The Armenian community distinguishes between their attitude towards the government and the people. And even if Armenians don't like Israel or Russia, we don't feel that about ourselves."

Turmoil in the Cows' Garden

Meanwhile, in Israel, the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem released a statement warning that the Church is facing "the greatest existential threat of its 16-century history." 

As one of the oldest Christian nations, Armenians have been living in Jerusalem for centuries and own a part of the Old City. This community is considered the oldest Armenian diaspora and has around 2,000 people. 

The dispute began after Armenian Patriarch Nourhan Manougian signed an agreement with Israeli businessman Danny Rothman's Xana Capital in 2021. The details of the agreement became public only in June of this year. As it turned out, the patriarch agreed to give XANA Capital a 98-year lease on a plot of land popularly known as the Cows' Garden (so named for its historical use for livestock grazing) to build a luxury hotel. 

The situation escalated after the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem, under pressure from the Armenian community, declared it was canceling the deal on October 26. On November 5, representatives of XANA Capital entered the Cows' Garden in order to lay claim to "their land." Some of the men were armed and some held barking dogs on leashes. 

The Patriarchate then criticized the company for resorting to "provocation, aggression, and other harassing, incendiary tactics including destruction of property."

After the incident, local Armenians have been staging a "round-the-clock sit-in on our land," Setrag Balian, one of the leaders of the Save the Armenian Quarter movement opposing the transfer, told Eurasianet.

"This deal is illegal, as according to Patriarchate internal law deals for over 25 years have to be approved by the Holy Synod and the General Assembly of St. James Brotherhood. So the patriarch didn't have the legal authority to sign such a contract on behalf of the community," Balian said. 

He praised his community for rising up against the transfer. "Now, we are all united together with the church to fight for our land that was acquired with sweat and blood," said Balian.

Armenians' and Jews' shared trauma

Back in Yerevan, Nathaniel Trubkin says he hopes Armenians and Jews can find common ground in their shared trauma. Both peoples were victims of campaigns of genocide in the 20th century, the Armenians by the Ottoman Empire during World War I and the Jews at the hands of the Nazis during World War II.

Trubkin points to the Jewish lawyer Rafael Lemkin as a possible unifying figure. Lemkin coined the term "genocide" in the early 1940s after studying the atrocities against Armenians and Jews and worked to establish international legal mechanisms for its prevention.

https://eurasianet.org/peaceful-coexistence-and-international-grievances-understanding-jewish-armenian-relations 

Armenian Prime Minister and South Korean President discuss bilateral agenda

Shushan Frangulian

 14:43, 28 November 2023

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 28, ARMENPRESS. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has spoken by phone with South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol.

According to a readout issued by the Prime Minister’s Office, the two leaders “were pleased to highlight the recent intensification observed in bilateral relations, as a result of which an agreement has been reached on opening embassies in the two capitals on the basis of reciprocity.”

A number of issues of bilateral interest were also discussed.

PM Pashinyan and President Yoon Suk Yeol expressed readiness to contribute to the development of bilateral relations between Armenia and South Korea.

Israeli right-wing extremists intimidate Armenian protesters in Jerusalem

Shushan Frangulian
The Observers

Dec 2 2023

Israeli right-wing extremists have been harassing members of Jerusalem’s Armenian community protesting the razing of an important historic site. An Australian businessman purchased the area, called Cows' Garden, back in 2021 to build a hotel there but there has been fierce opposition from the Armenian community. In recent weeks, the businessman has also participated in intimidating protesters.

By:Guillaume Maurice

A car park in Jerusalem has become the centre of a heated debate over the past few months. The car park is part of a historic area known as the Cows' Garden. Located in the city’s Armenian quarter, this site has cultural and historic significance to that community and includes a wall built during the Ottoman Empire.

However, back in 2021, Jerusalem’s Armenian Patriarchate – the religious authorities in the Armenian community – decided to sell the parking lot and several nearby buildings. They signed a 99-year lease with Australian businessman Danny Rubinstein (known as Danny "Rothman"), who owns the company Xana Garden.

He wants to demolish the site and build a luxury hotel. However, when news broke about the sale in October 2021, there was immediate outcry from Jerusalem’s Armenian community.

The Armenian Patriarchate granted a 99-year lease agreement to a private company called Xana Capital, according to a statement from SaveTheArQ, an Armenian collective that contests the legality of the sale. 

On October 26, 2023, the Armenian Patriarchate published a statement saying that they now considered the sale illegal, apparently backing out of the agreement they themselves signed and leaving the site in a state of legal flux.

Ever since the Patriarchate announced that they no longer considered the sale valid, there has been uncertainty about who actually owns the land. Our team contacted Jerusalem’s city government, but they said that they didn’t want to comment on the land and that it was a “private affair.”

We also reached out to the Patriarchate as well as Danny Rubinstein but neither of them wanted to speak about the contract either.

On November 6, Israeli settlers threatened protesters from the Armenian community opposed to construction on the historic site. Observers

However, the confusion around the site was immediately apparent. Just a few days after the Patriarchate’s announcement that they no longer viewed the sale as legal, demolition crews arrived on the site and began tearing up the parking lot, according to Setrag Balian, a member of SaveTheArQ.

There is talk about construction, but what we’ve actually seen are attempts at intimidation. They came with machines and armed settlers. We made a human chain and peacefully stopped the bulldozers. I was personally threatened by the director of the company [Rubinstein]. Since April, the settlers have banned a number of members of our community from parking in the lot. 

Bulldozers were brought in to demolish some of the lot.

Things became even more tense on November 6 when Rubinstein himself showed up alongside settlers armed with assault rifles. Skirmishes broke out between Armenian protesters and the armed men.

Arrival of Israeli settlers who faced off with Armenian protesters.

Many said that these armed men are radical activists from the Israeli far-right. Thanks to the online facial recognition software PimEyes, it’s possible to identify Saadia Hershkop, an American citizen known to have links to settler movements in the West Bank. On Instagram, Hershkop promotes organised trips to colonies in Hebron in the West Bank and poses for photos with weapons.

According to the Qatari newspaper The New Arab, Saada Hershkop is known to have links to a man named Eden Natan-Zada. On August 4, 2005, Natan-Zada killed four Israeli citizens as a sign of protest against the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza. Israeli law enforcement reportedly put out a warrant for Hershkop's arrest in connection with the crime.

It’s not just the conflict around the Cows' Garden. Some members of the Armenian community are reporting a rise in insecurity all round. Liana Margaryan, a member of the Armenian community who lives in Jerusalem, said the community began to feel intimidation after the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan in 2020. During the war, Azerbaijan reinforced its ties with Israel:

These attacks are carried out by Jewish extremists […] Most often, these are psychological attacks and threats. However, it has all become more intense since the conflict in the Cows' Garden […] they even attacked an Armenian restaurant.

Setrag Balian says that the Israeli government holds some responsibility for the rise in the violence towards Jerusalem’s Armenian community.

Since 2022, when Binyamin Netanyahu’s government took office, including ministers from the far right, there has been an increase in attacks against Christians. This includes everything from spitting to harassment to assault. Since the current government took office, extremists have the feeling they can act in complete impunity. 

The people who live in the Jewish quarter have been our neighbours for the past 40 years and we haven’t had any problems with them. 

Of course, it’s common that people who don’t like to see churches or crosses spit at us or shout insults… but it was nothing big, we felt like those were isolated incidents. But recently, we’ve felt directly targeted. 

Despite the intimidations, members of the Armenian community say that they will continue to fight against the construction of the hotel with sit-ins and protests.

https://observers.france24.com/en/middle-east/20231201-%C3%A0-j%C3%A9rusalem-l-extr%C3%AAme-droite-joue-l-intimidation-pour-forcer-la-vente-d-une-partie-du-quartier-arm%C3%A9nien

Azerbaijani historiography is nothing more than a contrast between the desired and reality: Gardman-Shirvan-Nakhijevan

Shushan Frangulian

 21:06,

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 23, ARMENPRESS.  Gardman-Shirvan-Nakhijevan Pan-Armenian Union has issued a statement regarding the circulation of fake scientific political discourse by Azerbaijan. The Union has urged Azerbaijan to admit the numerous historical injustices committed against Armenians over the past century.

‘’We call on Azerbaijan to take tangible measures for the just restoration of the rights of Armenians who have suffered from Azerbaijani aggression at different times.

 The selective approach to historical facts, the re-editing of the past and the formation of one-sided visions of the future in accordance with it are among the brilliant examples of Azerbaijani political hypocrisy.

This explains the great desire of Azerbaijan, as a young state, to hide the complexity of the historical past, because the historical reality is one thing, and the invention of the desired past is another.

Consequently, the entire Azerbaijani historiography represents nothing more than a contrast between the desired and the reality, from which there are two ways out: either accept reality and strive to correct its consequences, or accept a position of complete denial, repeating the dangerous practice of ethnic cleansing, cultural genocide, complete violation of human rights and disregard for authoritative international structures.

It is not difficult to notice the destructive approach adopted by Azerbaijan. The most superficial study of Azerbaijani society clearly shows that all layers of this state are focused on one issue: the development of anti-Armenian discourses.

Various initiatives containing ambitions for the sovereign territory of Armenia, the activities of government officials hidden under the cover of non-political organizations, meaningless and baseless speeches, scientific discourses, festivals, presentations, congresses clearly show Azerbaijan’s real ideas about regional stability,” the statement reads.