Category: 2023

July 6 2023

USC Viterbi Staff | July 6, 2023

July 7 2023

July 7 2023

Armenian and French defense cooperation has heated up in the past year. Last October, France appointed a permanent defense attaché to Yerevan tasked with increasing French-Armenian military cooperation. This May, Paris supplied Yerevan with 50 armored personnel carriers. Three weeks ago, 170 French parliamentarians and other elected officials called on the government to provide more military support to Armenia. And just last week, the Armenian Defense Minister was in Paris meeting with his French counterpart.

These developments worry Ukraine and Israel, who are concerned that French-supplied military technology could make its way to Russia or Iran given Armenia’s close ties to the two countries. Both Kyiv and Jerusalem have been silent publicly but have expressed their private concerns as noted by French military experts.

It wouldn’t be the first time that Russia’s military has profited from its alliance with Armenia. Since the start of Russia’s invasion in Ukraine in February of last year, senior U.S. trade and tax officials reported a surge of western electronic components sold to Russia through Armenia. This included electronic devices and chips crucial to the development of Russian cruise missiles and other weapons. Yerevan has also served as a transit hub for the Iranian drones headed to Russia. These are the drones that are often used to target civilian infrastructure.

Another cause for concern is the potential for French military technology to be reverse engineered. This March, CNN reported that Russia was capturing NATO and U.S.-supplied weapons like Javelin and Stinger missiles and sending them to Iran to be dismantled and analyzed to see if the Iranian military could make their own versions of the weapons. Iran has previously managed to reverse-engineer anti-tank guided missiles and drones from intercepted U.S. stockpiles.

The APCs that France already delivered to Armenia are the nearly 50-year-old VAB MK3s. This type of antiquated technology falling into Russian or Iranian hands would not be likely to cause too many issues. However, the French are considering supplying the Armenians with modern Sherpa and Bastion APCs. This has caused French defense experts to express their concern given Yerevan’s close ties to Moscow. And considering that Paris has supplied Kyiv with Bastion APCs, if Russia were able to get their hands on one, it would be able to better counter them on the battlefield.

France is aware of these risks but has prioritized its own influence in the South Caucasus. The weapons sale is not a matter of economics or profit, but a purely political calculation. Since their defeat in the 2020 Second Karabakh War, when Azerbaijan reclaimed a large swath of Armenian-occupied territory in the separatist territory of Karabakh, many in the Armenian government including Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, understood that Russia is not a reliable guarantor of their security. The realization made Yerevan search for a new patron – France.

Pashinyan has taken real steps to move westward, including distancing itself from the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization – or CSTO — defense pact. He also declared three weeks ago that Armenia would not act as a Russian ally in the war against Ukraine, leading to a retaliatory Russian ban on Armenian dairy products.

But Armenian politics are complicated. While Pashinyan appears to sincerely want to pivot Armenia westward, he can only do so much. Many Armenian elites and politicians have close ties to Russia and Armenia is still very dependent on Russia economically and militarily. Russia is Armenia’s largest trading partner in both imports and exports and has two military bases in the country. This makes reorienting extremely difficult. Additionally, Pashinyan must deal with domestic hardliners, often backed by Russia that have sabotaged attempts at making peace with Azerbaijan, a necessary step if the country aims to wean itself from Russian dependence.

That is why despite Pashinyan’s moves West, Yerevan has become one of Russia’s go-to partners in avoiding sanctions and has served as a transit hub for Western electronics used in the Russian war effort.

Armenia’s relationship with Russia is not the only cause for concern. Yerevan has also become closer to Iran as the latter seeks to contain Turkish and Azerbaijani influence on its borders. As Armenia attempts to rely less on Moscow, it has increased cooperation with Tehran.

When it comes to containing Turkey, French and Iranian interests overlap. Paris and Ankara have long competed for influence in the Eastern Mediterranean region and North Africa. Through Armenia, France feels it could counterbalance the Turkish-Azerbaijani tandem in the South Caucasus.

In addition to the perceived foreign policy benefits, increased military support to Armenia would be domestically popular for Paris. France is home to an estimated 650,000 Armenians, the largest Armenian diaspora outside the United States and Russia. This population is politically active and organized and French politicians know that military support for Yerevan and Karabakh is extremely popular.

Support from the Armenian diaspora has proven more important to France than Armenia’s actual welfare and finding a peaceful solution to the thirty-year conflict over Karabakh that has ravished the region. This was proven by French President Emmanuel Macron last week, when he told representatives of the local Armenian community that he was taking a stronger stance against his Azerbaijani counterpart than Pashinyan himself.

France should reconsider supplying Armenia with modern military technology. Russian expansionism is the real threat to Europe. And given the strong defense cooperation between Russia and Armenia, there is a high risk of French military technology giving Russia an advantage while it commits war crimes on European soil. France should also consider that meddling in the South Caucasus could jeopardize Azerbaijani energy exports to the Europe Union. These exports have been crucial as the European Union seeks to become independent from Russian energy. European officials have already expressed their concerns that Moscow is trying to use the separatists in the Karabakh region to create a conflict to disrupt this supply. Given the Armenian military’s historic close collaboration with the separatists in Karabakh, much like Russia’s relationship with Ukrainian separatists in Donetsk and Luhansk, French military technology supplied to Armenia could easily become part of this conflict.

If France truly wants to support Armenia, it should focus on helping the Pashinyan administration root out Russian influence. Now that Moscow is overloaded with its invasion of Ukraine and dealing with domestic challenges to Putin’s authority, it has less capacity to deal with maintaining its authority in the South Caucasus. Armenia is trying to take advantage of this trend, and hopefully it does, but it has a long way to go.

Azerbaijan – July 7 2023

BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 7. Azerbaijan welcomes the fair dismissal by the International Court of Justice of Armenia’s motion, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Elnur Mammadov tweeted, Trend reports.

"Azerbaijan welcomes today's fair refusal of the International Court of Justice in Armenia's petition to amend the court's decision of February 22, 2022. It was a unanimous decision of the court," he said.

Meanwhile, the UN International Court of Justice has rejected Armenia's petition dated May 12, 2023, regarding the alleged "illegality" of the Lachin border checkpoint and the requirement to "withdraw all Azerbaijani Armed Forces from the Lachin road".

In order to prevent the transportation of manpower, ammunition, mines, as well as other military equipment from Armenia for illegal Armenian armed groups on the territory of Azerbaijan (which weren't withdrawn contrary to the trilateral statement signed by Azerbaijani, Armenian and Russian leaders following the 2020 Second Karabakh War), and as an adequate response to the unilateral establishment of a checkpoint by Armenia on the border with Azerbaijan on April 22 at the entrance to the Lachin-Khankendi road contrary to the trilateral statement of November 10, 2020, on April 23 at 12:00 (GMT+4), the units of the State Border Service of the Republic of Azerbaijan set up a border checkpoint in its sovereign territories, on the border with Armenia, at the beginning of the Lachin-Khankendi road.

https://en.trend.az/azerbaijan/politics/3770181.html

July 7 2023

Azerbaijan's pro-government media has been signaling potential further military action against the Armenian-controlled part of Nagorno-Karabakh. 

And the president in his most recent speech stressed that ending the presence of any Armenian armed groups was a prerequisite for a comprehensive peace deal with Yerevan.

On July 3, the head of Azerbaijani state television AzTV, Rovshan Mammadov, said on his weekly talk show that Baku was within its rights to conduct "an anti-terror operation," in Karabakh and suggested it be titled "Revenge 3". 

"International law also allows for it. It's our territory – established by international law," Mammadov said. "But, once again – we don't want a war. We're committed to the peace process. However, we need to see Armenia's recognition of Karabakh as Azerbaijani territory not only verbally – but in a document." 

(Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said explicitly in May that Armenia was ready to recognize Azerbaijani sovereignty over Nagorno-Karabakh in exchange for internationally backed guarantees for the rights and security of the region's Armenian population.)

New Azerbaijan, the official newspaper of the ruling party, published a similar commentary on July 4 under the subhead "[Armenian] provocations lay the groundwork for Revenge 3". 

"Such situations [as the wounding of an Azerbaijani soldier] make a possible 'Revenge 3' operation relevant. Armenia's non-fulfillment of its obligations under the tripartite declaration signed in 2020 has created a new situation in the region," it read. 

"After the deployment of the Russian peacekeeping contingent to the relevant territories, the Armenian armed forces did not leave the territory of Azerbaijan, as it seems, on the contrary, they are engaged in new provocation-oriented activities."

The proposed title for the possible offensive refers to an operation in August 2022 when Azerbaijan captured additional territory in Nagorno-Karabakh, killing two Armenian soldiers and wounding 19 in the process. The Defense Ministry dubbed it Operation Revenge because it followed the killing of an Azerbaijani soldier. 

Another attack just two weeks ago was christened Revenge 2 by pro-government media because it followed an incident where an Azerbaijani soldier was wounded. 

President Ilham Aliyev brought up the subject once again in his most recent speech. Addressing a meeting of the Non-Aligned Movement in Baku on July 5, Aliyev said there are still "remnants of Armenian armed forces" in Karabakh. 

"If Armenia is really interested in achieving long-awaited peace in the region, then its armed forces must completely leave the Karabakh region of Azerbaijan," he warned. "Armenian military and paramilitary elements on the ground should be disarmed and demobilized."

Armenia pledged to withdraw all its troops from Karabakh by September 2022. The Armenian troops Aliyev was talking about belong to the de facto administration of Nagorno-Karabakh's own armed force, the Artsakh Defense Army. 

Prior to Armenia's defeat in the 2020 Second Karabakh War, that force was largely integrated with the army of the Republic of Armenia. Before the war, conscripts from Armenia were sent to serve in and around Nagorno-Karabakh. 

Aliyev and other Azerbaijani officials are clearly refusing to make a distinction between Armenian troops and Karabakhi Armenian troops.

Thomas de Waal, an analyst at the Carnegie Endowment, believes the Azerbaijani media hype is not a sign of a coming offensive but rather a negotiating tactic. 

"I do not think that we should expect a serious escalation from the Azerbaijani side," he told RFE'RL's Armenian service. "As we have seen over the past two years, they have adopted a tactic that can be described as 'coercive diplomacy', that is, the use of both force and diplomacy. This means that we sometimes see escalation, but it does not reach the level of full-scale war as long as negotiations continue."

As tensions rise over a possible escalation and demands to dissolve the local army, Karabakh's de facto president, Arayik Harutyunyan, addressed a letter to Russian President Vladimir Putin to be delivered by the Armenian prime minister. 

Karabakh's Foreign Minister, Sergey Ghazaryan, later clarified that the letter restated their expectation that the Russian peacekeepers will "fully lift the blockade" of Nagorno-Karabakh that recently came to exclude even patient transfers and supplies of essential items.

Soon afterward, the Kremlin press service reported a phone conversation between Prime Minister Pashinyan and President Putin "at the initiative of the Armenian side," where the leaders discussed the difficult situation around Nagorno-Karabakh.

Russia is overseeing peace talks between Armenia and Azerbaijan that are not coordinated with parallel negotiations brokered by the EU and the U.S.

The key sticking point in the talks has long been the fate of Karabakh's Armenian population. Yerevan, and the Western mediators, want Baku to hold talks with Karabakh Armenian representatives on their rights and security under prospective Azerbaijani rule.

Early in July, Armenian media reported on a U.S. offer to mediate Karabakh-Azerbaijan talks in a third country. Artur Harutyunyan, the parliamentary leader of Karabakh's ruling party, told RFE/RL that Stepanakert refused because the only issues up for discussion were the "agenda pushed by Azerbaijan," namely the "integration" of Karabakh Armenians into Azerbaijan. 

In an interview with Armenian Public TV, while speaking about the possibility of Armenians living in Azerbaijan, the US Ambassador to Armenia said, "We believe and hope it's possible." The statement sparked backlash both in Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh.

In a June 29 government hearing, Arayik Harutyunyan, Karabakh's president, restated that "There's only one topic Baku discusses with us – integration. There's no second topic."

Nagorno-Karabakh has previously agreed to negotiate with Azerbaijan on humanitarian issues, such as ensuring unhindered movement between the region and Armenia and restoring the gas supply in the region, which has been cut since March 22. But for most of the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh, integration with Azerbaijan is a "red line" they're not willing to cross.

Azerbaijan has continuously insisted on their willingness to negotiate with Nagorno-Karabakh after Karabakh disbands its defense army.

President Harutyunyan additionally remarked during the hearing: "Let me tell you the sequence: we announce that we have disbanded the army, we dissolve the state administration system. They [Azerbaijan] barely create a mechanism for municipal elections, after which they will restore gas and electricity and let us use the road. And clearly, they will allow us to do it only as citizens of Azerbaijan." 

These Armenian quotes showcase the immense pride and rich cultural heritage of its people.

Armenia is a country located in South Caucasus between the borders of Eastern Europe and Western Asia.

Armenia boasts an ancient culture that has been flourishing for centuries. 

These quotes encapsulate the collective values, aspirations, and experiences of the Armenian people.

In Armenia, you can find historical landmarks showing the resilience of the Armenian people.

Armenian history and culture are woven together; each contributes to the identity of this nation.

o embark on a journey through time and learn about some fascinating aspects of Armenian history and culture, continue reading below.

The deep-rooted Armenian culture is quite popular in the region and beyond.

The traditions have been passed down from one generation to another. 

For instance, Armenian culture boasts the following aspects:

• Soul-stirring music
• Vibrant folk dances 
• Elaborate craftsmanship 
• Intricate textiles

Armenians show unwavering pride when presenting or displaying their cultural heritage.

Tourists love to explore traditional Armenian cuisine, family customs, art forms, and festivals.

Armenian cultural festivals are also known for their vibrant atmosphere. 

Each of these festivals serves as a colorful aspect of Armenian culture.

Some of the most popular cultural festivals of Armenia include:

• Vardavar: The Festival of Water
• Navasard: Honoring Armenian Mythology
• Shoghakat Festival: Embracing Armenian Traditional Dance
• Areni Wine Festival: Celebrating Armenian Grape Harvest
• Yerevan Wine Days: Toasting to Armenian Wine Culture

Armenian architecture is a testament to the rich history this land owns. 

This place has been the interplay of various civilizations.

Each civilization has left its mark on the architecture and culture of this land. 

Here, you can find monastic complexes like Geghard and Haghpat.

The iconic Etchmiadzin Cathedral is another example showing a unique blend of different cultures. 

It involves a variety of elements linked to Persian, Byzantine, and Armenian architectural styles. 

When you Delve into the world of these architectural marvels, you can feel the significance of Armenian architecture.

Armenian literature and artists have gained a lot of popularity throughout the world. 

Some of the famous figures associated with art and literature include:

• Hovhannes Shiraz 
• Paruyr Sevak
• Martiros Saryan 

People like these have promoted Armenian culture. 

Following is the collection of top Armenian quotes that you would love to read. These quotes will help you in knowing about Armenian people and culture in a better way. 

1. “Armenian is the language to speak with God.” — Lord Byron

2. “It’s time to recognize the Armenian Genocide.” — Kim Kardashian

3. “The Armenian massacre was the greatest crime of the war.” — Theodore Roosevelt

4. “What a lonely and silly thing it is to be an Armenian writer in America.”  — William Saroyan

5. “The legacy of the Armenian Genocide is woven into the fabric of America.” — Adam Schiff

6. “The first genocide of the 21st century was against you, the Armenian people.” — Pope Francis

7. “He was so depressed, he tried to commit suicide by inhaling next to an Armenian.” — Woody Allen

8. “Armenia remains a dream, a subject of stories; it is still, against all odds, a place.” — Anthony Bourdain

9. “I’m Armenian, but I’m very fair, and I look white… I would always get such hate about it.” — Khloe Kardashian

10. “If I were money-motivated, I wouldn’t have joined a rock band with three other Armenian guys.” — Daron Malakian

The quotes below are related to having Armenian family backgrounds.

11. “I was born in Iran; my parents are Armenian.” — Gegard Mousasi

12. “I’m Armenian, so I’m oily and always have blotting papers.” — Khloe Kardashian

13. “My grandmother, Betty Bertha Bright, lived in the Armenian block in Kolkata.” — Pooja Bhatt

14. “I mean, my dad is half-Armenian, his father is 100%, and I actually think he has Armenian citizenship.” — Dan Bilzerian

15. “Raffi Cavoukian was born in Cairo in 1948 and moved with his Armenian parents to Toronto when he was 10.” — Sheila Heti

16. “My biological dad was Armenian. My last name is Lopez, and I have a darker complexion, which throws people for a loop.” — Seth Rollins

17. “I am Armenian, and I understand what it is to lose a country and lose a family and have massacres and genocides and everything against my people.” — Andrea Martin

18. “My forebears were fantastically wealthy Armenians who came to England from India in the 19th century and did what foreign types do – they married into a penniless but well-bred local family.” — Saul David

19. “On my father’s side, I’m descended from immigrants, one of whom was a Syrian refugee from the Armenian genocide, and my mother was an immigrant from Germany whose visa had expired and, for a year and change, was undocumented here in the U.S.” — Alexis Ohanian

20. “My family was very open. My grandfather was German and a Protestant. My father, a lawyer, was Greek Catholic and played the violin. My mother was very religious and went to church twice a day. My grandmother was Armenian. So I was raised with three different faiths – that’s why I am so open.” — Krzysztof Penderecki

Explore the enduring spirit of Armenia through these inspiring quotes that embody resilience, cultural heritage, and the power of survival.

21. “A woman telling her true age is like a buyer confiding his final price to an Armenian rug dealer.” — Mignon McLaughlin

22. “And I realized more and more that the Armenian story was not so much one of massacre and persecution, as survival.” — Philip Marsden

23. “When I was younger, I was listening to a lot of Armenian music, you know, revolutionary music about freedom and protest.” — Serj Tankian

24. “I was raised with a huge Armenian influence, always hearing stories of Armenia, celebrating Armenian holidays.” — Kim Kardashian

25. “Russia demanded Armenian territories, very cleverly using long-standing, bitter fights between Armenians and Turks.” — Ernst Kaltenbrunner

26. “The idea of telling the story of the Armenian genocide – or, really, any other genocide – and repeating those stories is really important.” — Chris Cornell

27. “Armenian folklore has it that three apples fell from Heaven: one for the teller of a story, one for the listener, and the third for the one who ‘took it to heart.’” — Nancy Willard

28. “The Christian Armenian story was the Polish Jewish story. The efforts of the Armenians to stay alive in Musa Dagh chimed with those struggling to survive the ghetto.” — Howard Jacobson

29. “With faith and courage, generations of Armenians have overcome great suffering and proudly preserved their culture, traditions, and religion and have told the story of the genocide to an often indifferent world.” — Jerry Costello

30. “From May until October, the Ottoman Government pursued methodically a plan of extermination far more hellish than the worst possible massacre. Orders for the deportation of the entire Armenian population to Mesopotamia were dispatched to every province of Asia Minor. These orders were explicit and detailed. No Hamlet was too insignificant to be missed. The news was given by town criers that every Armenian was to be ready to leave at a certain hour for an unknown destination.” — Herbert Adams Gibbons

There are various facts about every nation which others want to know. Below given quotes show some great facts about the Armenian people.

31. “Modern Armenia survived only because it was a single province controlled and protected by the Russian Empire.” — John Shimkus

32. “Armenia was always a minority nation. The Armenians were annihilated by the Russians and then by the Turks.” — Ernst Kaltenbrunner

33. “I am Armenian, so, of course, I am obsessed with laser hair removal! Arms, bikini, legs, underarms… my entire body is hairless.” — Kim Kardashian

34. “In 1911, Turkey established gun control. From 1915 to 1917, 1.5 million Armenians, unable to defend themselves, were exterminated.” — Joe Wurzelbacher

35. “Harout Pamboukjian is one of the biggest Armenian folk singers in the world. In the ’70s, he was making these records that were really Zeppelin-influenced.” — Serj Tankian

36. “It is simply in the nature of Armenian to study, to learn, to question, to speculate, to discover, to invent, to revise, to restore, to preserve, to make, and to give.” — William Saroyan

37. “On the eve of World War I, an estimated two million Armenians lived in the Ottoman Empire. Well over a million were deported, and hundreds of thousands were simply killed.” — Eliot Engel

38. “The Jews were gassed. Armenians were killed in every conceivable way… So the Holocaust doesn’t interest me, see? They’ve had a lot of publicity, but they didn’t suffer as much.” — Jack Kevorkian

39. “Not so many Armenian players are given a chance to play in the Champions League, and this is really important for me because I want to do everything to impress the children who are watching me playing.” — Henrikh Mkhitaryan

40. “In the 20th century, the Muslim world created a vision of religious nationalism. Turkey, for example, had to be ethnically Turkish. Kurds, Armenians, and other minorities didn’t have a place in such a vision of a nation-state.” — Feisal Abdul Rauf

History is full of events leading to the Armenian genocide, and the Armenian people mourn their genocide to this day. .

41. “What is compelling about the Armenian genocide is how it has been forgotten.” — Atom Egoyan

42. “The Armenian genocide showed what could happen when empires were beaten into nations.” — Niall Ferguson

43. “Our strength lies in our intensive attacks and our barbarity…After all, who today remembers the genocide of the Armenians?” — Adolf Hitler

44. “Like the genocide of the Armenians before it, and the genocide of the Cambodians which followed it … the lessons of the Holocaust must never be forgotten.” — Ronald Reagan

45. “The reality is that most of North America know next to nothing of the 20th century’s first genocide – the systematic slaughter of 1.5 million Armenians in the First World War.” — Chris Bohjalian

46. “This was a tragic event in human history, but by paying tribute to the Armenian community, we ensure the lessons of the Armenian Genocide are properly understood and acknowledged.” — Jerry Costello

47. “The Armenian Genocide is such a controversial and very sensitive issue because the Turkish and Armenian people disagree about the facts of what actually happened.” — Khloe Kardashian

48. “Moreover, as the leadership of the House confirmed last year, the Administration remains opposed to a congressional resolution on the Armenian Genocide due to Turkish objections.” — Patrick J. Kennedy

49. “If Turkey is prepared to acknowledge the Armenian Genocide, then its leaders can proceed immediately to direct dialogue with its counterparts in Armenia to define a common vision for the future.” — Mark Foley

50. “The AXA and New York Life settlements are important building blocks not only toward seeking financial recovery for the losses resulting from the Armenian Genocide but also in our ultimate goal, which is for Turkey and the US to acknowledge the genocide officially.” — Mark Geragos

The Armenian diaspora has reached almost every corner of the world. 

Armenian history and culture have shown resilience, which is why Armenian traditions are still practiced. 

In addition, Armenian artists and literary people have contributed a lot to the express the identity of Armenian culture. 

This is one of the reasons behind the popularity of Armenian quotes.

You can share these quotes with your friends and family via any social media platform.

If you have found your favorite Armenian quote, do share it with us via our comments section. 

We would love to know about your choice.

Georgia – July 7 2023

U.S. Embassy in Armenia

July 6 2023

https://am.usembassy.gov/james-o-brien/