Sept 22 2023

With the ceasefire in Nagorno-Karabakh falling apart, and no deal between local leaders and the central government in Azerbaijan, the future of Armenians in the region remains precarious. 

While the vast majority of Armenian society, the Armenian foreign minister, as well as international observers are gravely concerned for their security, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan says otherwise. 

“At this moment, our assessment is that there is no direct threat to the civilian population of Nagorno-Karabakh,” Pashinyan said in a live address on September 21. 

In a complete contradiction, Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan told a UN Security Council meeting on the same day that “Azerbaijan’s intention is to complete the ethnic cleansing of the Armenian population of Nagorno-Karabakh.” 

Since March 2021, access to Armenian-administered Nagorno-Karabakh has been tightly controlled by the Russian peacekeepers, making information difficult to verify. But three days after the beginning of Azerbaijan’s 2023 offensive, credible reports are starting to emerge of civilian casualties and war crimes. The prime minister’s statement triggered widespread outrage and led his critics to repeat their accusations of treason. 

“I believe the PM was talking to the domestic audience and trying to avoid panic in Armenian society, while fighting against Russian state attempts to weaponize the suffering of the Armenians of Artsakh to bring down democratic governance in Armenia. He failed in doing so and even angered many of his own supporters,” analyst Eric Hacopian told Eurasianet. 

The timing of the statement, right before the UN Security Council meeting, couldn’t have come at a worse time, according to human rights attorney Sheila Paylan. “The statement is puzzling, and also obviously untrue.” 

“Perhaps in trying to calm people down, the prime minister thought he needed to make that statement,” she told Eurasianet, noting the angry protests on the streets of Yerevan.

As of September 20, the de facto Karabakh authorities were counting 200 people killed and over 400 wounded. The streets of Stepanakert are filled with “displaced people, hungry, scared, and in uncertainty,” said Karabakh Human Rights Ombudsman Gegham Stepanyan.

According to Stepanyan, his office has received more than 600 cases of people missing in the region, as of September 22nd. 

“Lack of communication made it almost impossible to find them or find out whether they were killed or not. Residential areas are cut off from each other, people’s fates are unknown,” former Armenian human rights defender Arman Tatoyan said. There have been reports of a bounty of $500 being placed on the head of a particular Karabakhi Armenian woman on an Azerbaijani Telegram channel. She is to be given to a man named “Murad” as a birthday present, the alleged Telegram post reads. 

Some Armenians on social media recalled video evidence of atrocities by Azerbaijani troops against female Armenian soldiers during Baku’s incursions into Armenian territory in September 2022.

Against this backdrop, many found the prime minister’s comment about Armenians not being under threat in Karabakh inexplicably tone-deaf.

He did say in the same remarks, however, that his government was prepared to handle an influx of 40,000 families from Karabakh (which should roughly cover the region’s entire population that Armenian sources estimate at 120,000).

So far there has been no sign of Karabakh Armenians leaving through the Lachin corridor, the only route connecting Nagorno-Karabakh to Armenia. Azerbaijan has been tightly restricting and at times completely closing the corridor in one form or another for the past nine months, resulting in acute shortages of food and supplies.  

“It’s not opening anytime soon,” said journalist Shant Khatcherian, who is standing by on the Armenian side of the border alongside other journalists, NGO representatives and Armenians who have relatives in Karabakh. 

Meanwhile in Armenia, today marks the fourth straight day of protests. Roads have been blocked and dozens of people have been arrested. While the anger against Russia, the European Union, and other international institutions has been palpable, many Armenians are looking closer to home for someone to blame. 

Fin DePencier is a journalist based in Yerevan

Sept 22 2023

Russian peacekeepers with fleeing Armenians at Stepanakert airport (Photo: AFP via Getty)

Reuters

Sept 22 2023

Sept 21 2023

HEADLINE:

 

The Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin has announced that the Blessing of the Holy Muron ceremony, planned to take place on October 1, has been postponed. Instead on that date, the Mother See will lead worldwide Armenian churches in a pan-national Prayer for Artsakh.

 

Diocesan Primate Fr. Mesrop Parsamyan informed the faithful of the Eastern Diocese of the decision in a message of September 22. Despite the postponement of the Muron Blessing service, the Episcopal Ordination services on October 8–where Fr. Mesrop will be consecrated as a bishop of the church–will go forward as planned. The service in New York welcoming the newly ordained Bishop Mesrop back to the Eastern Diocese will also proceed as planned on October 14.

 

Read Fr. Mesrop’s message to the public below.

 

* * *

 

A Message from Our Primate, Fr. Mesrop Parsamyan

 

Dear Faithful:

 

These are hard days for all Armenians: a time of heartache, deep reflection, and earnest prayer over Artsakh. The mood of our people, in our homeland and around the world, is somber—and naturally that sensibility will affect our national observances planned for the coming days.

 

I am writing to inform the faithful of the Eastern Diocese that the Blessing of the Holy Muron—the grand ecclesiastical celebration scheduled to take place on October 1, 2023, at the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin—has now been postponed, and will not be going forward as planned.

 

This decision was made by our church’s Supreme Spiritual Council, during a meeting on September 22, presided over by His Holiness Karekin II, the Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians. The determination was prompted by the circumstances now surrounding Artsakh. A new date for the blessing ceremonies has not been announced.

 

Instead, a different service will be held at Holy Etchmiadzin on Sunday, October 1: a pan-national Prayer for Artsakh, which will be offered as part of the Divine Liturgy at the Mother See, and in Armenian churches throughout the world on that day. Additional information on this service will be shared with parishes as it becomes available.

 

Finally, with great humility, I want to inform our faithful that the Episcopal Ordinations scheduled for Saturday, October 8, will indeed go forward as planned. I am already deeply grateful for the honor His Holiness Karekin II will confer on me and my brother clergymen on that day—and to receive this precious sacrament at such a critical time in our history leaves me profoundly moved in my heart and spirit.

 

In our own Diocese, my first Episcopal Divine Liturgy in New York’s St. Vartan Cathedral will also go forward as planned, on the morning of Saturday, October 14. I take this opportunity to renew my invitation to all our people across this blessed Diocese to join us in prayer, with a spirit of Christian Hope, on that day.

 

To close, let me repeat what I told worshippers last night, during a united prayer gathering at St. Vartan Cathedral, presided over by myself and my Brother in Christ Archbishop Anoushavan Tanielian. I observed that at this point in time, we cannot predict what the outcome of this week’s developments will be. But one thing is very clear to me: That in the days and weeks to come, our people in Artsakh are going to need our support more than ever before—and that we must stand united, as Armenians, to help in any way we can. It will take great spiritual reserves to undertake the task before us. But our Lord Jesus Christ has given the Armenian people such strength in the past—and He will do so again. It is to Him, above all, that we must open our hearts, and ask for his help and blessing.

 

In the days and weeks to come, please keep these calls to united effort in your heart. And please continue to pray for the Lord’s protection over our brave Armenian sisters and brothers in Artsakh.

 

Prayerfully

 

Fr. Mesrop Parsamyan
Primate

 

 

—9/22/23

 

# # #

PRESS OFFICE 

Diocese of the Armenian Church of America (Eastern) 

630 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10016 

Contact: Chris Zakian 

Tel: (212) 686-0710; Fax: (212) 779-3558 

E-mail: [email protected] 

Website: www.armenianchurch.us 

 

__________________ 

 

ATTENTION EDITOR: Photo attached, wth caption below.

HEADLINE:

Fr. Mesrop Parsamyan’s Words of Solidarity with Artsakh

 

St. Vartan Cathedral in New York was the site of a community gathering “In Solidarity with Artsakh,” in the early evening of Thursday, September 21.

 

The event went forward under the auspices of Fr. Mesrop Parsamyan and Archbishop Anoushavan Tanielian. It included short remarks and prayers for God’s protection over the brave Armenians of Artsakh.

 

What follows are the remarks delivered by Fr. Mesrop Parsamyan on the occasion.

 

* * *

 

Dear Friends,

 

On behalf of my Brother in Christ, His Eminence Anoushavan Srpazan, and all our faithful clergy, I want to thank you for answering our call, and joining us this evening, here at St. Vartan Cathedral. At times like this, I truly feel that this sanctuary achieves the dream of its founders: to be a Home to all Armenians of America. So I want to welcome all of you to your home.

 

The idea of Home is why we are here: “Home” in the sense of Homeland. We Armenians have cultivated our homeland for thousands of years: built it up, adorned it with monuments to God, and defended it in times of crisis. In ages past, we nourished the dream of one day having an independent homeland to call our own. And 32 years ago today that long-held dream became a glorious reality for us: a miracle that came about by our people’s will and vote.

 

Of course, another part of our homeland was born in struggle, forged by heroes, secured and defended at significant cost for three decades. Our homeland of Armenia and Artsakh is small—but it is ours, and every square mile of its territory, every monument to its history, is precious to us, as Armenians.

 

My friends, I don’t have to tell you this is a dire time for our precious homeland. The war three years ago was a catastrophe for us. The aggression against Artsakh since then, and the blockade that it has endured for the better part of a year now, have threatened to make life itself impossible. And now the attack of this week raises the definite possibility of ethnic cleansing: another genocide of our people.

 

We cannot predict what the outcome will be from any of this. We cannot—we must not— fall into despair. But at the same time, we must be honest about the truth. The days to come will be difficult and demoralizing for our sisters and brothers in Artsakh. And for all Armenians, as well.

 

But one thing stands as clear as day to me. And that is: That in the days and weeks to come, the people of Artsakh will need our support more than ever before. And equally clear to me is that we must stand united as Armenians, ready to help in any way we can. In any way we are called to do.

 

My friends, we must be honest that we should not expect any outside forces to do this work for us. Indeed, we can continue to appeal to our governments, call our congressmen, and continue to make our voices heard however we can. Perhaps some help will come from such efforts.

 

But we must look to God and to ourselves, first and foremost. If our brothers and sisters in Artsakh are to survive, it will be because, with God’s help, we were united in our conviction to help them, and united in our actions. In the days to come, as the situation on the ground becomes more apparent, we will begin to know what form that help must take. And when we do, we must be ready to respond—together.

 

My friends, it is going to take great spiritual reserves to undertake this task. We must ensure that we nourish and maintain the health of the Armenian communities here in America, even as we re-dedicate ourselves to the well-being of the Armenians of Artsakh. But our Lord Jesus Christ has given the Armenian people such strength in the past. And He will do so again. It is to Him, above all, that we must open our hearts and ask for his help and blessing.

 

That is why Anoushavan Srpazan and I felt it was so important to hold this gathering in a sacred place, beneath the watchful eyes of God, as a united family of faithful. May our merciful Lord attend to the prayers being said tonight by His children—in Artsakh, in Armenia, and at this cathedral now—and in so doing, may He reveal His will for us, and for the continuing life of our precious homeland. Amen.

 

—9/22/23

 

***

 

PHOTO CAPTION:

 

At St. Vartan Cathedral in New York, Fr. Mesrop Parsamyan addresses a community gathering in solidarity with Artsakh. The gathering went forward under the auspices of Archbishop Anoushavan Tanielian of the Eastern Prelacy and Fr. Parsamyan of the Eastern Diocese.

 

# # #

Sep 13 2023

https://www.devdiscourse.com/article/politics/2591660-russia-blasts-statements-by-both-armenia-and-azerbaijan

The Print, India

Sept 13 2023

(Reuters) – Russia has protested to Azerbaijan over comments it made about weekend regional elections in areas of Ukraine claimed by Moscow, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Wednesday.

She also accused Armenia of making “unacceptable and harmful” statements that were damaging to the prospects for a peace settlement between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the breakaway territory of Nagorno-Karabakh.

TASNIM, Iran

Sept 13 2023

Al Arabiya, UAE

Sept 13 2023

Washington is stepping up its efforts to solve the looming humanitarian crisis in Nagorno-Karabakh as tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan simmer.

US officials have been working around the clock to find a sustainable solution to a blockade imposed by Azerbaijan against some 120,000 residents in the Nagorno-Karabakh enclave.

For all the latest headlines, follow our Google News channel online or via the app.

Officials from the Biden administration have repeatedly voiced their concern about the deteriorating humanitarian conditions inside Nagorno-Karabakh, comprising an Armenian population that broke off from Azerbaijan decades ago. The region is internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan.

However, the Lachin Corridor, a land link between Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia used for transporting medicine, food and other necessities, has been blocked by Baku.

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) last month urged Azerbaijan to reopen the Lachin Corridor and “uphold its international obligations to respect and protect human rights, including the right to food, health, education and life.”

Despite Washington’s call for immediate reopening of the corridor, the impasse continues, with Baku insisting on other routes from Azerbaijan to transport goods into the region to unblock the Lachin Corridor.

Traditionally, residents of Nagorno-Karabakh are opposed to assistance from other routes, a senior State Department official said. US officials clarified that they were not getting involved in the kind of deal the two sides might arrive upon or its modalities.

“We are doing everything we can to try to facilitate any kind of a deal because our goal is to get humanization assistance in,” the senior State Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told reporters.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his team have been personally engaged in the deliberations as they look for a breakthrough.

Senior Adviser for Caucasus Negotiations Lou Bono is in constant discussions with all sides to try and resolve the humanitarian situation and this long-standing conflict, the State Department said. Deputy Assistant Secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs Joshua Huck has also been heavily involved in the mediation.

Senate Foreign Relations Committee chair Bob Menendez has said the Biden administration should sanction Azerbaijan for human rights abuses.

This week, he slammed the Aliyev government again. “The Aliyev government in Azerbaijan is carrying out a campaign of heinous atrocities. Now is the time to step up and protect this vulnerable population,” Menendez said during remarks on the Senate Floor.

The State Department officials remained tightlipped when asked if they had threatened Baku with sanctions over its refusal to reopen the Lachin Corridor.

State Department officials rejected that the US risked normalizing Azerbaijan’s use of starvation as a negotiation tool. “I think the Azerbaijanis would say there’s no forced famine whatsoever; they would say, ‘Look, trucks are sitting right outside of Nagorno-Karabakh ready to provide food.’”

They also said there were no confirmed cases of starvation in Nagorno-Karabakh despite former International Criminal Court (ICC) chief Luis Moreno Ocampo describing the situation as there being “reasonable basis” to believe that genocide was being committed against Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh.

In a sign of a potential easing of tensions, a Russian Red Cross truck delivered aid to Stepanakert on Tuesday, making it the first time in 35 years that aid from Azerbaijan was allowed in.

US officials believe there is an opportunity for Armenia and Azerbaijan to settle their dispute and normalize ties but acknowledge the obstacles to a settlement.

“But it’s bigger than that; this is something that can stabilize the region and normalize relations in the region,” a second senior State Department official said. “We are all in on this. This is a priority for the administration and Secretary [Blinken].”

The first State Department official pointed to the potential economic benefits of the region for the US and the European Union and to break the cycle of instability. “This is not just us wishing it; both sides want it, and we’re hearing this from the actual governments involved.”

According to US officials, three rounds of talks between Armenia and Azerbaijan have taken place in Washington, and both sides are prepared to return for further discussions.