Following Armenia’s defeat in the 2020 Artsakh War, and the Armenian government’s concessions under the sham banner of “democracy,” came the “peace” narrative – peace at any cost, even if it meant recognizing Artsakh as part of Azerbaijan and abandoning its population to ethnic cleansing, which has been swiftly followed by the willingness to give away the enclaves (eight villages demanded by Azerbaijan) and the Syunik province.

Prime Minister Pashinyan presents the “Crossroads of Peace” project at the Tbilisi International Forum in October (Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia)

This has now been elevated to new heights by the “crossroads of peace,” a plan for regional interconnectivity that was introduced by the European Union and mimicked by Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan as if it is the genius invention of his administration. While presenting the project at an international conference in Tbilisi on October 26, PM Pashinyan said it would enhance communication between Armenia, Turkey, Azerbaijan and Russia through infrastructure development.

But what does it really mean? 

The current government has admitted that Azerbaijan’s appetite for more territory was not satisfied by the fall of Artsakh, and a peace agreement might not end Azerbaijani aggression towards Armenia. It also says that Armenia has no security guarantor, as Russia has stopped its role. Instead of offering a substantial policy to fill the security vacuum, Armenia feels it has no choice but to offer the “crossroads of peace” for the sake of the economic wellbeing of the region, which is supposed to bring a hypothetical peace.

Instead, the “crossroads of peace” is an extension of appeasement, a foreign policy of pacifying an aggrieved country through negotiation in order to prevent war. It compels Armenia to submit and concede, to become useful to aggressive neighbors through realism.

The concept of regional connectivity through transit routes is not new, as it has been considered by previous administrations. However, it is unrealistic at this stage, as alternative trade routes already exist that bypass what is offered under the “crossroads of peace” plan. Rather, the project would further benefit Azerbaijan. Through soft power, Azerbaijan would control Syunik and the enclaves and disrupt other infrastructure. The peace agreement that PM Pashinyan is so keen to carry out, even though he does not have the legitimacy to do so, is a pretense for capitulation that would bring further losses and see the creation of Azerbaijani settlements on Armenian territory.

To participate in this project and create a route connecting Armenia and Turkey, the latter would demand that Armenia end claims to historic lands, stop pursuing Armenian Genocide recognition and change the wording of Armenia’s constitution. This is actively being discussed in the ruling Civil Contract party circles and has been mentioned a few times by the Prime Minister. All nationalist, “revanchist” elements of society would be banished, followed by a change in the education system to implement internationalism and globalism as opposed to national values. Armenia would become a society void of any identity, where nationality does not matter and only money and commercial benefits are prioritized.

But is the concept of “peace” realistic in an environment where Armenia is surrounded by aggressive, fascist states that only want to see Armenia’s demise? In such an environment, Armenia could be wiped off the map, as its survival would not be tolerated. 

Moreover, the “crossroads of peace” will not serve the independence and sovereignty of Armenian statehood. The operating license of Armenia would be handed over from Russia to Turkey and Azerbaijan. 

One must fight for sovereignty, independence and freedom, as was the case during the world wars, after the Armenian Genocide and during the 1990s. A country must build an army that is not afraid to die for liberty and form alliances with powers that can guarantee the strengthening of military capacities.

Pashinyan is not capable of creating a sovereign state or strengthening the army. In fact, he has done the opposite and has become a symbol of defeat and capitulation. The bar has been lowered to the point that no red lines remain. 

It has been three years since the end of the 2020 war, and no alternative narrative has been put forward to create an army and foreign policy that will strengthen Armenian statehood. Instead, a defeatist narrative has penetrated the opposition mindset as well. . 

We have heard endless messages about how Armenia is facing an existential danger. However, for three wasted years, Armenia has waited for Russia to come to its rescue while it has repeatedly betrayed Artsakh. We must accept that Russian interests have changed, and while it no longer sees Armenia as a useful slave, it has forged deep alliances with Turkey and Azerbaijan. Russia greenlit the war in 2020, the blockade and the genocide carried out by Azerbaijan in Artsakh. 

Yet, the opposition still has not accepted this reality. It does not openly criticize Russia and still believes that negotiation can win Russia over. The opposition has made several mistakes:

1. It never openly rejected the November 9, 2020 ceasefire agreement.
2. It trusted Russia’s promises that it would come to power in the near future, made periodically over the last three years, which gave the opposition a false hope and only cemented Pashinyan’s power.
3. During the blockade, it never expressed dissatisfaction towards the peacekeepers’ inability to keep the Berdzor (Lachin) Corridor unobstructed and avoid the massacres of September 19. It never demanded an international peacekeeping presence.
4. To this day, it has not demanded answers from Russia regarding why it assisted the genocide and forced displacement of Artsakh’s Armenian population. Artsakh’s Armenians, unlike Pashinyan’s Armenia, stayed loyal to Russia until the end. They entrusted Russians with their safety and returned to Artsakh after the 2020 war, where large billboards were raised featuring Putin’s images.
5. It did not demand to know why the security and dignity of Artsakh’s Armenians were not protected. Rather, they were subjected to humiliation by the abduction of civilians at Azerbaijan’s checkpoint along the Berdzor Corridor and of Artsakh officials from Stepanakert.

The longevity of statehood is ensured by creating policies and offering solutions to survive in a complex geopolitical environment and evolving world order. It is not ensured by repeating that we are in crisis.

Instead, some of the opposition members have come up with the defeatist solution of joining  the union state with Russia. The so-called nationalists prefer to forsake sovereignty and join a union that is not accepted by the world for the sake of saving what we have left.

Some of the opposition is prepared to offer a shrunken country to Russia rather than keeping the current territories intact. It provides parallels to 1920, when Armenia became Sovietized to deter more bloodshed. However, Russia is not the same as it was then. The Soviet Union and the Cold War no longer exist. Russia is weak, rejected by the world, isolated and in a deep strategic cooperation with Turkey and Azerbaijan. One cannot trust the security guarantees that Russia offers but is incapable of or willing to implement.

Our current political elite has presented two scenarios: to submit to Azerbaijan, concede to their demands and end up with a Yerevan city-state with no national identity, or join the union state. Both are equally flawed and equally dangerous for the survival of Armenian statehood. 

What are some alternatives?

Although we have lost precious time and territories with the loss of Artsakh and the war, national values can be reinvigorated by contributing our global nation’s collective resources to create the ideal state. The time to act is now. We cannot wait until the traitorous “peace” agreement is signed. We did not resist when Berdzor was handed over without a fight, which was followed by the blockade and depopulation of Artsakh. We must organize to stop the shrinking of our land bit by bit and uphold our territorial integrity. We must rebuild the army and form alliances that will strengthen our security. We must reach a consensus for a national agenda that will protect our statehood and reject the two remedies that do not serve national interests. All the concerned and caring groups who want to see an independent state must unite to determine what we want as a nation.

Armenians made the impossible, possible after the Armenian Genocide, when we had no state institutions and no external help. We achieved this once again in the 1990s, when we created an independent state based on the ideology of Artsakh’s independence, with no army or assistance. History demonstrates that when Armenians unite in times of adverse danger, they create victorious resistance movements.

This is not an easy task. It requires leadership with the right mindset, dedication, sacrifice, conviction and determination to succeed. If we do not fight for our survival, no one else will do it for us. We will only gain our integrity and respect from the international community when we stand for our just cause. If we don’t, we deserve to be stateless. After all, romanticism brought us victories, not realism.

My wife and I traveled to Florida this past week to attend the funeral of my uncle, who lived in northern Florida for the better part of the last 30 years. After my paternal grandparents migrated from Sepastia and Adana (with grandpa’s three-year stint in the Armenian Legion), they settled in Massachusetts, where our extended family established roots. Most of our greater family originated from either Indian Orchard (“the Orchard”) or Franklin, Massachusetts. Spending my summers on my grandparents’ poultry farm in Franklin afforded us a unique perspective of Camp Haiastan—attending as a camper and visiting as a “local.” Eventually, a branch of our family moved to California, to Los Angeles and San Jose. Another branch of the family from my parents’ generation moved to Florida. 

Uncle George and Aunt Rose Torosian

The primary purpose of our visit was to attend my dear uncle’s funeral, but we also had the opportunity to see several relatives who are all in their 90’s. Uncle Charlie, my father’s youngest brother, moved to Florida to retire. He was 91 and had served on the Camp board for many years during his time residing in Franklin. Uncle George and Auntie Rose, also poultry farmers from Franklin and remarkable individuals with keen insight and vigor for life, retired to the same area many years ago. One of their sons and his wife live close by to provide family support. Aunt Vivian lives in the area and is the senior member of the clan at 98. Her daughter and husband also live in the same town. We commonly refer to them as “Armenian aunts and uncles,” although they are technically my father’s first cousins. They have always been aunts and uncles to us and were indispensable parts of our upbringing. 

During times of loss, it is natural to seek the comfort of those we trust and love. The loss of a close relative is a time to grieve, mourn, remember and be thankful for the impact they had on our lives. A loss within a nation is very similar. Each generation of Armenians has suffered terrible losses and has mourned those tragedies before recovery can begin. For our grandparents, it was the Armenian Genocide with its human and territorial theft. My parents’ generation experienced losses associated with a world war, when many went to serve and not all returned. Most of our elders never discussed the pain of their survival in the horror of war. Today’s generation is reliving the losses of our survivor generation with the vivid observation of the atrocities in Artsakh. As the injustice was unfolding, the pain was heightened by our feelings of helplessness. 

While the wheels of justice move slowly or may not exist, we have but one outlet to mourn and recover. We are sustained by the power of our familial and community relationships. After the Genocide, many compatriotic unions were established from their villages of origin in western Armenia. They were a bonding force to bring some level of transitional comfort during those horrific times. Armenians still get excited when they have chance encounters on campuses or through professional experiences. During my business travels, while my colleagues would go to the hotel bar or tourist sights, I would often explore the local Armenian community. It was not a unique practice. Many Armenians have had similar experiences. It is odd that a people plagued with division instinctively have an affinity for each other. It is our relationships at various levels that sustain us, replenish our approach and take us to new levels. We continue to rely on each other for identity. 

I recently read the address by Noubar Afeyan at the Mirror-Spectator celebration, sharing his thoughts on our unjustly imprisoned former Artsakh State Minister Ruben Vardanyan. The original visionaries of the Aurora Initiative, including the late Vartan Gregorian, created a synergy of unprecedented thinking and mutual respect. I could feel the concern for Ruben in Noubar’s address. Projects like these require resources and vision, but relationships give us the courage to expand our thinking. Noubar is here, and Ruben is jailed in Baku, but the relationship endures. It is the same for the thousands of relatives, organizational colleagues and personal friends who we call the global Armenian nation. 

When I was in Florida, I thought a great deal about the family relationships that have made us who we are today. Our extended family placed a very high value on respect for our elders. In my youth, our family came together frequently, but we were never allowed to run off with our cousins until we had given proper attention to our older relatives. Over the years, it has become clear to me that this was not a move for control by our parents and grandparents. They gave us a gift of learning and gaining wisdom from these people. We would spend countless hours listening to them and watching their every move. In my hyphenated Armenian life, I played with my buddies in the neighborhood during the week. My friends knew, however, that I was rarely available on weekends, since we would either visit relatives or host them in our numerous backyard kebab picnics. These relationships developed because our parents believed, based on their inherited values, that family bonds are essential in receiving the joy of life and managing adversity. It was difficult to maintain this lifestyle alongside work and local community activities, but it resulted in a sustained Armenian identity and family relationships that have guided our lives for decades. I watched how the family came together in times of loss but also to share moments of happiness. 

Stepan Piligian’s Uncle Garo Yergatian and Uncle Paul Piligian

It is a daunting thought that my peers and I are separated from becoming the elder generation by just these six individuals. My entire life, I have had the privilege of receiving guidance from my elders in a nurturing environment we call the Armenian family. My relatives in Boston, San Jose and Florida are between 95-98 years old. Auntie Dot is 96 and anchors the family in Boston, along with our Uncle Garo at 95 in Franklin. It is truly a blessing to be in their midst. This trip was special, given the substantial time with each of them to catch up, laugh and reminisce.

My cousins recently observed that growing up, we had the benefit of mentoring from aunts and uncles in moments when our parents would have been less effective. It was not a threatening experience but rather gave us advice and made us feel more secure. Were there moments when we may have been less than gracious? Sure, but the long-term impact has influenced how we choose to parent. The role of grandparents has always been very important in our family model. Many Armenians grow up adoring their grandparents. Many of our childhood experiences were under duress due to societal changes and geographic proximity, but the emergence of two income households has increased the supporting role of grandparents and added depth to the relationship. Grandparents are capable of communicating and supporting children in unique ways that can bolster the values that will guide our youth. Will this cultural norm continue to fuel our Armenian identity? It will take continued commitment by all of us.

Our trip to say goodbye to our uncle was a reminder that our time is finite but full of blessings. My Uncle Paul in California is 96 and very active. He moved in 1963, settling in San Jose in 1968. He vowed not to let geography impact our relationships. He and my aunt have spent the last 55 years illustrating that point, with countless trips east for weddings, anniversaries and other events. This summer, he and his family came to the east coast three times for weddings. The beauty of this commitment is that his nieces and nephews have visited him many times in California. It is role modeling at its best. Our identity is seeded in what we hold in common. Uncle Paul has spent many of his visits documenting our family history. He wrote a genealogical history a few years back, which he now teaches to our younger generations. It was a picture of beauty at the end of our daughter’s wedding to see Uncle Paul “holding court” with our emerging generation, filling in the blanks for them and motivating them to seek answers. This generation has a wealth of knowledge, as children of Genocide survivors, who were born into an economic depression, served to save the free world and provided a safety net for succeeding generations.

Most people spend the majority of their lives establishing and developing relationships. Family, professional and community relationships form the essence of human outreach. We also strive for a personal relationship with our Lord Jesus Christ, which takes us beyond our earthly existence and introduces us to the importance of salvation and eternity. It is these relationships that open the path for our identity. We must utilize our relationships to work through the sense of loss. We must stay active in our communities, support the efforts to assist those deported from our Artsakh and stay informed so we can add value. Building and maintaining these relationships should be a very personal matter. Maintain important relations, encourage your children to be involved with peer relatives and heal the wounds that keep us apart. There has been a recent surge in our pan-Armenian thinking, as more Armenians recognize the importance of collaboration. I can’t think of a better enabler for pan-Armenian behavior than investing in meaningful relationships.

This article is the third in a series about the fall of Artsakh, its humanitarian consequences and relief efforts, based on Lillian Avedian’s on-the-ground reporting from Armenia in October 2023.

On her final day in Artsakh, when virtually its entire population had fled following a brutal attack by Azerbaijan, Kristin Balayan prepared a meal for the employees of her cafe. She ordered them to deliver some bread she had baked to the local hospital, and in their absence, she cooked in her cafe Tumanyan in Artsakh’s capital city Stepanakert for the last time. The meal had the somber, religious quality of the last supper, and the group offered toasts and broke bread as they prepared to leave behind their beloved cafe to an unknown fate. Balayan left the table settings from that final meal intact, in hopes that if Azerbaijani soldiers entered the cafe and saw a table filled with plates and food, they would not destroy it. 

Balayan was among the few to stay in Stepanakert until September 29, 10 days after Azerbaijan launched its full scale assault on Artsakh, or Nagorno-Karabakh, triggering the mass displacement of the region’s Armenians. She prepared free meals for those who remained. After nine months of a devastating blockade, food was scarce, so she got creative. Lacking flour, she baked lavash bread using bran, or “what we feed pigs,” as she disdainfully called it. People donated whatever food they had left in their pantries–“half a bottle of olive oil, some sugar, some noodles,” Balayan recounted–to her cafe before embarking on the long drive to Armenia.

Balayan’s story is representative of Artsakh’s Armenian women, who learned to stretch their resourcefulness as cooks to its limits under blockade. In times of crisis, the responsibility of adapting to new social and financial challenges in order to protect the health and wellbeing of the family often falls on women, who traditionally are the homemakers and family caretakers. They become problem solvers, crafting solutions with minimal material resources besides their own creativity and care. Following the fall of Artsakh to Azerbaijan and the refugee crisis, Armenian women have also adopted the roles of humanitarian aid workers, continuing to utilize their skills to feed and sustain their communities. 

From September 19-20, Azerbaijan launched an assault on Artsakh to capture the territory by force. The de facto Armenian authorities, which had governed the region since the first Artsakh war in the 1990s, were forced to agree to disband and disarm the Artsakh Defense Army. Within a week, about 100,000 people, virtually the region’s entire Armenian population, fled to Armenia. The attack followed a nine-month blockade imposed by Azerbaijan that deprived Artsakh of much of its food supply and basic goods. By the time of the attack, fresh produce, dry goods, fuel, medicine and hygiene products were almost nonexistent. Armenia now faces the humanitarian challenges of meeting the basic needs of the Artsakh refugees and securing long-term housing, employment and social services for the traumatized population.

Bread prepared from rice (Photo: Lillian Avedian)

Faced with the impossible task of feeding their families under a blockade, Artsakh’s women created solutions, crafting recipes with whatever fell into their hands. They made coffee, Armenians’ drink of choice that is always offered to guests, by grinding barley and combining it with salt. Each household developed its own recipe for baking bread, another staple of the Armenian diet, without flour. One woman, the 36-year-old mother of teenagers Ani and Babken, showed me a picture of a recipe she invented, combining rice with yeast and salt to mimic the consistency of bread. “It’s tiring and stressful, when your hands are empty, and your children are hungry and ask for food, wondering what I will give them,” she said. 

In the latter months of the blockade, when food and basic necessities were especially scarce, the government distributed vouchers for procuring bread. People stood in line for hours, sometimes well past midnight, to take a couple of pieces of bread home to their families. On extremely hot summer days, people, especially children and the elderly, frequently fainted while waiting in long lines. 

The mother of young children Agnessa and Sashka invented ersatz laundry detergent by baking bars of soap until they reached the consistency of jelly and combining them with salt. “We don’t know if our clothes were washed or not,” she chuckled. The young mother is full of jokes. She poked fun at the absurd, previously unimaginable steps her family was forced to adopt in order to survive. It appeared to me as her mechanism to cope with the unrelenting stress of the upheavals and uncertainty of the past year.

She filled my lap with vouchers, featuring brightly colored images of fruit, vegetables and dry foods. The government distributed the vouchers for people to obtain limited quantities of food from the state supply. She never got to use the vouchers, because there was no food left to procure with them. She kept the small, square pieces of paper, because her children enjoy playing with the vivid images. “This is vermicelli. This is rice,” she counted, laughing as she held up the vouchers one by one. “We would look at the vouchers and get full. That’s how we lived. We lived through photos. We lived by tricking ourselves.”

Just like their mother, Agnessa and Sashka were quick to smile. Sashka sprinted around the room, his laughter echoing off of the high ceilings. I wondered whether their mother’s humor and capacity for imagination had protected them from grasping the difficulties facing their family and absorbing stress and grief.

I met the family at the shelter of the Goris Development Foundation, a nonprofit that empowers women to find work and engage in public life. The organization has turned a large room, reminiscent of a gym or a banquet hall, into a shelter for displaced people from Artsakh. I sat cross-legged on the floor, in the middle of a cluster of beds, where women gathered to sit and speak with me. Agnessa approached me every few minutes with a drawing made of colored pencils or a card game, asking to play. As I was leaving, she gave me three presents: a scribbled drawing, a pencil and a plastic Easter egg concealing a walnut. 

Ruzanna Torozyan, executive director of the foundation, warned that the displaced Armenians of Artsakh are struggling with severe health issues due to the lack of nutritious food during the blockade. This was exacerbated by limited access to doctors or medical services, since the resources of hospitals and medical institutions were depleted by the absence of medicine, supplies and fuel. She advised that medical experts should conduct research in the coming months to determine the health needs of the displaced population.

Several of the Armenians from Artsakh I met told me that Russian peacekeepers delivered food to Artsakh from Armenia during the blockade and sold it to the local population at higher prices. Following the end of the 2020 Artsakh War, a Russian peacekeeping contingent was deployed to Artsakh. During the blockade, peacekeepers sold a kilogram of sugar for 5,000 drams, about $12 USD, to the local Armenian population. Bottles of olive oil were sold between 5,000-10,000 drams each, up to $25 USD. A pack of cigarettes cost 15,000 drams, or $37 USD. Ani and Babken’s mom told me that a pack of cigarettes is usually sold for 120 drams. “The peacekeepers made good money,” she scoffed.

During periods of upheaval and uncertainty, women, who according to traditional social norms are looked to as the pillars of the family, draw on immense reserves of creativity and resourcefulness to keep their families alive. The women of Artsakh, in addition to the standard expectations of cooking, cleaning and running the household, carried the added burden and responsibility of learning to prepare food, while their home was under the grip of an unrelenting blockade on food and supplies. Their work multiplied, while their capacity for problem solving and invention was on full display. 

To keep her cafe running, Balayan relied on one of the rare foods in easy supply that grows abundantly in Artsakh – chickpeas. She made hummus the centerpiece of Tumanyan’s menu, which she blended without the costly olive oil. She mixed jam with bran to bake cookies without sugar or flour. “Throughout the blockade, our closest clients would knock on the door and enter. They called us mom and dad. We were like family,” Balayan recalled. 

Balayan’s qualifications are endless – in addition to establishing a cafe, she is also the founder of MilaGri, a foundation that supports children with special needs. She opened Tumanyan to use her skills as a home chef for her husband and two children to raise funds to launch a kindergarten. She also held sessions at Tumanyan for kids with special needs to connect with psychologists, speech therapists and rehabilitation services. 

Balayan carries her immense love and longing for her abandoned cafe. “Our most expensive loss is the soul we put into the cafe,” she reflected. She hopes to open a similar cafe in Yerevan, with the same layout – a lush yard with canopies for outdoor seating where she can host community events and educational services for children. Her loyal clients have been pressing her to open a new cafe. “They keep asking me, when are you going to make hummus again?” she shared with a laugh.

While she is still grieving Tumanyan, Balayan has drawn on her endless reserve of resourcefulness and resilience to commence work in Armenia. She has been working for the World Central Kitchen, an international organization that provides hot meals in the aftermath of humanitarian crises. When I met her at the World Central Kitchen operation at the Armenian General Benevolent Union headquarters in Yerevan, she had been working since six in the morning. “I can’t rest. If I don’t work, I’ll go crazy. A normal person would go crazy in these circumstances, so we’re not normal,” she said wryly. 

World Central Kitchen has recruited 18 women from Artsakh, including Balayan, to work for their operation to prepare and deliver hot food to displaced people from Artsakh living in Armenia. Globally renowned chef and restaurateur Aline Kamakian has been in Armenia since the end of September as one of the leaders of the operation. She and the women from Artsakh share a common bond – in the midst of chaos and destruction, they learned how to cook food with little means, and they used those skills in service of their communities.

Volunteers with World Central Kitchen (Photo: Lillian Avedian)

Kamakian’s Lebanon-based Armenian restaurant Mayrig was destroyed by the devastating Beirut blast in August 2020. She rapidly mobilized her staff to rebuild the beloved restaurant and prepare thousands of free hot meals for Beirut’s residents. “I cooked with the leftovers of Mayrig restaurant. With the wood that was broken, I made a fire. We didn’t have plates. We were in a situation where there was nothing,” Kamakian said. 

Whether cooking free meals after a disastrous explosion or mass displacement, or inventing recipes under blockade, Armenians have learned to cook with limited resources and immense creativity. Armenian women have been the centerpiece of this project, keeping their families and communities alive in their roles as home chefs, restaurateurs or aid workers.  

This theme is woven throughout Armenian history. Kamakian’s grandmother was eight years old when she left Musa Ler, the site of famed resistance against the genocidal Ottoman army in 1915. Exiled from her ancestral lands, she relied on her memories of the smells and tastes of the comfort dishes she grew up with to recreate the recipes of the traditional cuisine of Musa Ler. In Kamakian’s words: “We’ve become creators of food from nothing.”

One day a little more than 20 years ago, Everett Marabian of Warwick, Rhode Island, was driving through the Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Exeter, Rhode Island, to visit the Korean War Veterans memorial. “I noticed monuments dedicated to Italian American veterans and Jewish American veterans and thought to myself that Armenian veterans should have one, too,” he told the Weekly.

Marabian put the wheels in motion, eliciting the support of the Armenian churches in the state, and many individual donors. He also researched potential locations for the monument in the cemetery and discovered that there was an open space right next to the Greek American Veterans monument. 

The Armenian American Veterans monument in the Veterans Memorial Cemetery, Exeter, RI (Photo: GVK Images)

Once the proper spot was found, Marabian engaged his first cousin Vartkes Kaprielian, a well-known local advertising executive and artist, to design the monument. “I wanted a nice design, and he thought Mount Ararat would be a good symbol for Armenian Americans. I also insisted on including Armenian crosses on the top left and right corners,” Marabian said. The inscription on the monument reads: “In honor of all Armenians who served in the Armed Forces of the United States of America.”

Marabian noted that while the monument and design were beautiful, he also wanted the location to be spectacular, so he commissioned two stone benches to adorn the plot. One is inscribed, “God Bless America,” and the other, “In God We Trust,” as a symbol of Armenians’ Christian faith.

The Armenian American Veterans monument was dedicated and blessed on May 4, 2002. Following the dedication, supporter and fellow veteran Ramon Zorabedian became “the architect of the annual service that is held at the monument,” committee member LTC. Robert Harootunian said.

Over the years, the Armenian Veterans Memorial committee has honored many notable community members at the annual Veterans Day commemoration, including monument designer and World War II veteran Vartkes Kaprielian, his son Vietnam veteran Michael Manoog Kaprielian, World War II veteran Souren Mouradjian, whose daughter Joanne now sings the national anthem at the service, and the most decorated serviceman from Rhode Island and World War II marine Harry Kizirian. 

The Providence Homenetmen Scouts serving as flagbearers for the annual remembrance, Nov. 11, 2023 (Photo: GVK Images) Joanne Mouradjian, Archdeacon Hagop Khatchadourian, Rev. Fr. Kapriel Nazarian and Deacon Alex Calikyan (l-r) during this year’s service (Photo: GVK Images)

This year’s annual remembrance was held as it always is, on Veterans Day, November 11. The program included the Providence Homenetmen Scouts presenting the colors, Joanne Mouradjian singing the national anthem, all in attendance reciting the Pledge of Allegiance and the R.I. National Guard serving as honor guards. Sts. Vartanantz Armenian Apostolic Church pastor Rev. Fr. Kapriel Nazarian officiated the prayer service, assisted by Archdeacon Hagop Khatchadourian of Sts. Vartanantz Church and Deacon Alex Calikyan of Sts. Sahag and Mesrob Armenian Apostolic Church. This year’s honoree was Ramon Zorabedian, the man who spearheaded the yearly service.

Born in 1936, Zorabedian immigrated to the United States in 1955, and his parents, both orphans of the Armenian Genocide, joined him in 1958. In 1959, he was drafted into the Army, serving at Fort Dix. He narrowly missed going to Vietnam and entering Officer Candidate School due to his need for an income to support his parents and brother, ultimately being discharged for “hardship” reasons. 

Following his discharge from the Army, Zorabedian served as a reservist for several years in the 1960s while working in the jewelry industry in Providence. He met his wife Sonia in 1969, and they were married in 1970, followed by the birth of their daughters, Tanya Garrian and Tara Zorian.

Tanya Garrian (left) and Tara Zorian hold their father Ramon Zorabedian’s portrait at the Armenian American Veterans monument on November 11, 2023 (Photo: GVK Images)

“We are very grateful and proud of our father’s military service to this country and have immense respect for the opportunities it afforded him and his family,” Tanya and Tara wrote to the Weekly. Unfortunately, due to illness, Zorabedian was unable to attend the service at the Armenian American Veterans monument. His daughters gratefully accepted the honor on his behalf, bringing a beautiful portrait of their father. “We deeply appreciate his recognition while applauding him in sharing his commitment and unwavering desire to uphold the creation and maintenance of the Armenian Veterans Memorial,” they said.

The Rhode Island National Guard (Photo: GVK Images)

An image from the October weekly protests in front of the JFK Federal Building in Boston

BOSTON—To protest the lack of a U.S. response to Azerbaijan’s ethnic cleansing of Artsakh Armenians, a coalition of local advocacy, community, youth and student groups assembled by the Zoravik Activist Collective held a silent vigil every Thursday afternoon in October in front of the JFK Federal Building in Boston. 

By making the cause of Artsakh Armenians visible to federal elected representatives and their staff members, the group caught the attention of Senator Ed Markey, who spoke with the activists, later inviting them to participate in an online roundtable discussion of Massachusetts Armenian community leaders. Senator Markey said he had signed legislation to grant more humanitarian aid to Artsakh Armenians and he had urged both the State and Treasury Departments “to impose sanctions under the Global Magnitsky Act on select individuals in the government of Azerbaijan.”

Inspired by this interaction, the group wrote to Senator Elizabeth Warren, who in turn invited Zoravik to organize a similar online roundtable discussion on Zoom on November 9. At the meeting, Zoravik’s Lisa Gulesserian read the group’s demands:

“We expect our government to prevent genocide and support democracies. We demand: 1) condemnation of Azerbaijan’s genocidal actions at the highest level from our president; 2) concrete steps to hold Azerbaijan and its leadership accountable (such as sanctions against individuals, as well as cutting off all military and other aid to Azerbaijan); 3) more humanitarian aid for forcibly displaced Armenians from Artsakh and robust security aid for the effective self-defense of Armenia; 4) that Azerbaijan return Armenian political leaders and prisoners of war illegally held in Baku. Senator Warren, we ask you to not only co-sponsor and support current legislation with these demands in the Senate, but also to actively advocate for these demands in Congress by giving public speeches on and off the Senate floor and by actively persuading your colleagues in Congress to join your efforts. It’s the right thing to do.”

A screen shot from the November 9 roundtable held over Zoom with Senator Elizabeth Warren

Gulesserian then moderated representatives from the Armenian Assembly, Armenian National Committee of America, Pan-Armenian Council, Armenian Youth Federation, the editors of Genocide Studies International, Harvard Law Armenian Student Association and other local student associations, along with interested individuals, who informed the senator of their concerns. Oft-repeated demands included sanctions against Azerbaijan and greater humanitarian aid for Artsakh Armenians, along with concerns that Azerbaijan could attack Armenia and the need for Artsakh’s cultural monuments to be protected. 

Senator Warren spoke of her dedication to the issues, citing her support for Senator Padilla’s June resolution that called for sanctions against Azerbaijan. She pledged to elevate the issues with the State Department. She also said, “If people in the U.S. aren’t talking about it or don’t understand, then the State Department and government feel less urgency to talk about it on their end.”

To continue pressuring elected leaders while educating the public, Zoravik will hold a rally at the JFK Federal Building in Boston, at the intersection of Cambridge and Sudbury Streets, on Saturday, November 18 from 3:30-5 p.m., with many of the roundtable representatives sharing their statements alongside musicians and local elected officials. Protest signs will be provided.

“Our visibility and pressure are amplifying Artsakh Armenians’ needs and fight for justice,” said Sevag Arzoumanian, Zoravik member. “So we welcome all members of the Armenian community to the rally to demonstrate their support for our siblings in Artsakh. Let’s show other Armenian communities throughout the U.S. how to similarly pressure their elected representatives.”

French President Emmauel Macron and Armenian PM Nikol Pashinyan meet in Paris before the transfer of weapons (Photo: RA Office of the Prime Minister)

YEREVAN—France’s government has initiated the dispatch of weapons to Armenia, setting in motion terms set forth in French-Armenian cooperation agreements inked last month. 

Footage aired recently showcased the unloading of several French-manufactured Bastion versatile armored vehicles and parts of the ARQUUS’ brand, specifically designed for the Bastion, at Georgia’s Poti port along the Black Sea coast. The shipment reportedly included over 21 Bastion vehicles out of the 24 allocated by the French military. These vehicles and corresponding components are slated to journey from Poti to the Georgia-Armenia border for transfer to the Armenian side. 

France had initially intended to supply the Bastion armored personnel carriers to Ukraine but was rejected by Kiev, as reported by Ouest France. The 12.5-ton vehicles were turned down by Ukrainian authorities, who determined that they would provide inadequate protection against artillery and anti-tank missiles. La Tribune had previously disclosed France’s plans to provide Kiev with 20 Bastion vehicles in October 2022.

When asked about the reports and images circulating on Telegram channels regarding France’s delivery of military equipment to Armenia, spokesperson of the Ministry of Defense (MoD) of Armenia Aram Torosyan refrained from providing further details beyond the official messages and statements on cooperation in the defense sector between Armenia and France stating, “We cannot disclose any additional information at this time.” 

This move by the French military follows the signing of agreements aimed at “expanding bilateral cooperation” last month. French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna had previously announced Paris’s commitment to forthcoming contracts for supplying military equipment to Yerevan. The contracts were formally signed on October 23 in Paris, where Armenia’s Defense Minister Suren Papikyan and his French counterpart Sébastien Lecornu were signatories.

Lecornu emphasized that along with the arms delivery, France would provide training for Armenian officers on operating the military equipment and support ongoing reforms within the Armenian armed forces. He underscored the defensive nature of the weaponry, stating it was intended to bolster Armenia’s self-defense capabilities and protect its population.

France also plans to sell Mistral short-range surface-to-air missiles and three radar systems to Armenia. Reports suggest that around 50 units of VAB MK3 medium-weight combat-proven armored vehicles might also be part of the current agreements.

Georgian authorities confirmed that France dispatched ACMAT Bastion armored personnel carriers to Armenia via the Port of Poti, which was also verified by APM Terminals Poti to RFE/RL’s Georgian service. 

Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Ayhan Hajizadeh strongly criticized France’s supply of armored vehicles to Armenia. He expressed concern that this equipment transfer would bolster Armenia’s military strength.

Hajizadeh rebuked France for undermining efforts toward regional normalization based on “mutual respect for sovereignty and borders,” stating that the weapons dispatch would exacerbate regional tensions. He urged both Armenia and France to halt regional militarization, advocating for peace and cooperation as the sole viable path forward. Furthermore, he called on the international community to refrain from arming Armenia, claiming such actions impede peace and prosperity in the region. Meanwhile, Azerbaijan continues to arm itself with Israeli weapons. 

When asked about the transfer of French armored vehicles to Armenia through Georgia, Georgian Foreign Minister Ilia Darchiashvili stated, “Every nation retains the right to maintain defense forces and acquire conventional weaponry allowed by international agreements.” Darchiashvili affirmed that both countries should equally access Georgia’s transit function, noting that baseless insinuations were unwarranted.

Furthermore, he reiterated Georgia’s stance on non-participation in the “3+3” negotiation format. Darchiashvili highlighted Georgia’s positive bilateral relationships and cooperative ties with neighboring countries Turkey, Armenia and Azerbaijan, reinforcing Tbilisi’s commitment to maintaining amicable relations in such bilateral formats.

As the republic receives military equipment rejected by Ukraine from France, Armenia has also finalized an arms deal with India. Armenia reportedly plans to acquire anti-drone military equipment worth $41 million from India, specifically the Zen Anti-Drone System (ZADS), to bolster its air defense capabilities. Armenia has reportedly signed the contract involving supply, maintenance and training by Zen Technologies. This follows prior defense cooperation between India and Armenia following the 2020 Artsakh War, including arms deals totaling $400 million, which consist of Pinaka multi-barrel rocket launchers (MBRL), anti-tank missiles, rockets and ammunition. 

The European Union has also discussed providing non-lethal military aid to Armenia. During its November 13 meeting, the EU Foreign Affairs Council deliberated enhancing the EU monitoring mission by sending more observers and patrols to the Armenian border. The Council emphasized vigilance against destabilization in Armenia and warned Azerbaijan against compromising its territorial integrity. 

Armenia’s deepening relations with the West and India suggest a significant shift in regional geopolitics. These deals aim to diversify Armenia’s arms suppliers beyond its traditional reliance on Russia. There is speculation that Armenia could take further steps, such as withdrawing from Russian blocs like the CSTO and the EAEU. Russia, though equipped with economic leverage, has not taken action against Armenia’s pivot. 

Armenian authorities have repeatedly declined to participate in CSTO meetings. Armenian PM Nikol Pashinyan has informed Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko that he will not be present at the upcoming CSTO Summit in Moscow on November 23, citing scheduling constraints. The Armenian government, via its Telegram channel, conveyed Pashinyan’s decision, hoping for understanding from CSTO partners. This follows Pashinyan’s absence from the CIS Summit in Bishkek last month. In a recent interview with The Wall Street Journal, Pashinyan voiced discontent over the fulfillment of alliance obligations by the CSTO and Russia, stressing Armenia’s need to diversify its national security relations.

Armenia’s pivot away from Russia is taking place amid uncertainty over the status of enclaves in Armenia and the potential threat of Azerbaijani aggression aimed at controlling a corridor through the Syunik province.