Peace or final surrender? Armenia's struggle for identity in the shadow of Karabakh
EREVAN (Armenia), June 11 — As children chased pigeons and old men murmured under poplar trees in Yerevan's central square, unease hung in the air.
Armenia is divided over what more it must surrender for a shot at lasting peace with Azerbaijan.
Azerbaijan has demanded sweeping concessions from its arch foe as part of a deal to end decades of hostility and conflict between the Caucasus rivals.
Despite the tranquil scenes of a warm spring day, the issue has stirred worry in a fragile Armenian society, still reeling from a humiliating military defeat in 2023.
Life 'is full of uncertainty', said Nare Barseghyan, a 25-year-old philologist.
'We have a divided society, toxic politics and a growing disrespect for our country,' she added.
'People shouldn't be constantly threatened that there will be a new war if we don't yield to Azerbaijani demands,' she said.
Exodus
Since the break-up of the Soviet Union, the Caucasian neighbours have fought several wars for control of the Karabakh region, which was historically part of Armenia.
Officially recognised as part of Azerbaijan, it was ruled by pro-Armenian separatists for three decades.
Azerbaijan recaptured it in a lightning 24-hour offensive in 2023, prompting more than 100,000 ethnic Armenians to flee the mountainous enclave.
The defeat and exodus have deepened Armenia's political divisions and sparked street protests over the government's handling of the crisis.
Seeking to move beyond the conflict, Baku and Yerevan agreed in March on the text of a broader peace treaty, hailed by some as a possible turning point in relations.
But Azerbaijan is asking, among other demands, for Armenia to first amend its constitution to formally drop any territorial claims to Karabakh — a move that would sever its bond with a region perceived by Armenians as their ancestral homeland.
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has signalled his readiness to comply for the sake of a lasting peace, announcing plans for a constitutional referendum in 2027.
'No security'
The loss of Karabakh has splintered Armenian society.
'Some believe the issue of Artsakh is closed but most do not — because no nation can so easily give up a part of its homeland,' said Robert Matevosyan, 52, using the Armenian name for Karabakh.
'You can't close that chapter when every day you see people from Artsakh who've lost everything,' he added, referring to the Karabakh refugees who rushed to the relative safety of Armenia.
Matevosyan, a softly spoken engineer and part-time tour guide, is from Syunik, a southern Armenian region that borders Azerbaijan.
When he returns to his village of Kapan, with Azerbaijani military posts just a few hundred metres away, he said he feels the tension in the air.
'There is no security. Only the illusion of it,' he told AFP.
He does not want Armenia to change its constitution 'under threat from Azerbaijan'.
'If anyone thinks this will bring peace, they're wrong. Azerbaijan doesn't want peace,' he said.
Such doubts are widespread across Armenian society, where Pashinyan's proposed constitutional referendum dominates public discourse.
'The constitution shouldn't be changed under external pressure,' said Karine Hambardzumyan, a 65-year-old physicist.
'I don't want to build my life under someone else's threats. Let it be hard, let it be difficult — but let it be our choice.'
'Retake' Karabakh
Many in Armenia still harbour hopes of one day reclaiming Karabakh.
'We should first build a strong country,' Hambardzumyan said. 'Then we will retake Artsakh.'
Musician Vahan Artsruni, 59, struck a similar note.
'We can bring Artsakh back — not now, maybe, but in time. If we are united,' he said.
'I feel the same spirit I felt 30 years ago,' when Armenian forces took control of Karabakh following the Soviet Union's collapse.
He dismissed the constitutional debate as 'one of many false agendas pushed by the government' and said he was not worried about the result.
'Given the extremely low level of trust in the government, it's already clear that even if the issue reaches a referendum, it won't pass,' he said.
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The Star
2 hours ago
- The Star
In Armenia, rising ceasefire violations bring fears of war with Azerbaijan
KHNATSAKH, Armenia (Reuters) -Nightfall is an anxious time for residents of Khnatsakh. Every evening at around 10 p.m., automatic gunfire echoes through the tiny village in Armenia, locals say – the sound of Azerbaijani troops firing into the night sky from their positions across the border, high above. The bullets regularly hit houses, though no-one has been hurt, so far, the villagers say. Azerbaijan denies its troops have been shooting across the border, and has accused Armenian troops of violating the ceasefire. "It's very tense because at home we have the children, the little ones, and the elderly," said Karo Andranyan, 66, a retired mechanic. A hundred metres from his front door, on the hillside, an Azerbaijani military position with a flag fluttering in the breeze is a reminder of the proximity of Armenia's bitter rival. The heavily militarized, 1,000-km border has been closed since the early 1990s. The countries have fought two major wars in the past 40 years, destabilising the Caucasus - a region that carries major oil and gas pipelines toward Europe, and is strategically important to Russia, Iran and Turkey. Rising tensions along the border are increasing the risk of new clashes between Armenia and Azerbaijan as they approach a critical juncture in a tortuous peace process, two experts told Reuters. In March, the two sides said they had agreed the outline of a peace treaty that could be signed in 2026, raising hopes of reconciliation. The draft envisions the two sides demarcating their shared border, and requires Armenia to amend its constitution before Azerbaijan ratifies the deal. But since then, reports of ceasefire violations along the border have surged, following months of relative quiet. Andranyan said he thought the nighttime gunfire was meant to intimidate the villagers and the small garrison of Armenian troops stationed there. The village - which census data said had a population of 1,000 - was emptying as locals feared a return to conflict, he said. "What are we supposed to do?" Though there have been no fatalities on the border since last year, incidents of cross-border gunfire are reported regularly. Most of the accusations since March, which describe cross-border gunfire and occasional damage to property, have been made by Azerbaijan against Armenia. Both sides have repeatedly denied allegations of ceasefire violations. The simmering conflict has shifted decisively in Azerbaijan's favour since 2020, as the oil and gas producer recaptured territory lost in the 1990s and progressively re-established control over the breakaway Azerbaijani region of Nagorno-Karabakh where ethnic Armenians had established de facto independence since the collapse of the Soviet Union. In 2023, it retook all of Karabakh, prompting the territory's 100,000 ethnic Armenians to flee en masse to Armenia. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told a congressional hearing last month there was a "real risk" of war between the two. He said that the U.S. wanted Azerbaijan "to agree to a peace agreement that does not cause them to invade a neighboring country, Armenia." Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, in power since 2003, said in January that Armenia presented a "fascist threat" that needed to be destroyed. Laurence Broers, an expert on Armenia and Azerbaijan at London's Chatham House think tank, said that though a return to full-scale war was possible, more localised skirmishes were more likely. He said Azerbaijan, whose population of 10 million is three times Armenia's, has few incentives to agree swiftly to a peace treaty and may instead rely on smaller scale escalations to force its neighbour to make further concessions in the talks. 'Escalation and militarization has been a very successful strategy for Ilham Aliyev,' he said. Armenian authorities have repeatedly insisted there will be no war. In a speech last month, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said that the two countries would not resume fighting, 'despite all the arguments, all the provocations'. In response to questions about the border tensions, Azerbaijan's Foreign Ministry referred Reuters to its previous public comments. In a statement in May, it said that Baku is committed to peace and has no territorial claims on Armenia. It said that Yerevan's actions "call into question Armenia's commitment to peace". Azerbaijan's Defence Ministry has consistently denied Armenian reports of cross-border gunfire. TENSIONS IN THE SOUTH Armenia's southernmost province of Syunik is at the heart of the dispute and is where most ceasefire violations are reported. Syunik separates the main body of Azerbaijan to the east from the Azerbaijani exclave of Nakhchivan to the west. It also provides a vital trade route for Armenia to Iran, which it borders to the south. Azerbaijan has since 2020 demanded Armenia provide it with a corridor through Syunik to Nakhchivan. Baku has said that the passage would remain Armenian territory but have minimal controls from the capital Yerevan. Some Azerbaijani officials have also suggested that southern Armenia is historically Azerbaijani territory, though they have not pressed a formal territorial claim. In addition to its border with Azerbaijan, Armenia's frontier with Turkey – a close ally of Baku's – is also closed, making its boundary with Iran a lifeline for trade. A corridor through Syunik could risk shutting off its access to the remote, mountainous border. Armenia and Iran have warm ties, despite Armenia's Christian religion, and increasingly pro-Western orientation. In 2022, Iran was Armenia's fourth-largest source of imports. In May, Tehran's defence minister visited Yerevan, with Iranian media quoting him as expressing Iran's opposition to redrawing borders in the region. The dilemma is heightened by Armenia's strained ties with traditional ally Russia, which opposes Armenia's bid to draw closer to the West, and which has deepened its links with Azerbaijan. "Armenia has two open borders, one with Georgia, and the other one with Iran. And this keeps the country going,' said Tigran Grigoryan, director of the Regional Centre for Democracy and Security think tank, in Yerevan. Grigoryan said that Azerbaijan's demands for the corridor could be the spark for future military escalation. He suggested that the ceasefire violations may be an effort to force Armenia into making concessions on the issue. "If Armenia loses its border with Iran, that would be a catastrophe,' he said. The Iranian and Russian foreign ministries did not reply to requests for comment. Throughout Armenia's isolated south, the importance of the Iranian connection is clear. Along the single route that links the two countries, Iranian road workers are labouring to expand a narrow, zig-zagging mountainside road clogged with lorries from south of the border, heading north towards Georgia and Russia. Along the way, some locals sell plastic bottles full of red wine to truckers newly arrived from Iran, where alcohol is banned. At Armenia's southernmost tip sits the historic town of Meghri, the gateway to Iran. Only 16 km away from Azerbaijan, the town of 4,000 has seen its daily life overshadowed by tensions with Baku, deputy mayor Bagrat Zakaryan said. 'Given the recent events in Karabakh, and what the president of Azerbaijan has been saying, there is this feeling of fear,' he said. OPPORTUNITY FOR PEACE Others are more optimistic about the prospect of peace. Until 1993, Armen Davtyan was the deputy director of Meghri's railway station, which sat at a crossroads connecting Yerevan to Baku, and Iran to the Soviet Union, until the latter's 1991 dissolution. But after the 1988-1994 Karabakh war and the closure of the frontier, the tracks connecting Armenia to Azerbaijan were ripped up and Davtyan went to work as a border guard. A rusted train, emblazoned with a Soviet emblem, lingers outside the station building, now a derelict shell metres from the Iranian border. Davtyan said he fondly remembered the pre-war days, when Armenians and Azerbaijanis worked together on the railways, and hopes that one day cross-border trains might again pull into Meghri station. "I do understand that some people are scared that if the railway reopens, the Azerbaijanis will return," he said. "But if in 2025, people are still scared of us opening transport links, I think that's a little absurd." (Reporting by Felix Light; Editing by Daniel Flynn)
Malay Mail
a day ago
- Malay Mail
Peace or final surrender? Armenia's struggle for identity in the shadow of Karabakh
EREVAN (Armenia), June 11 — As children chased pigeons and old men murmured under poplar trees in Yerevan's central square, unease hung in the air. Armenia is divided over what more it must surrender for a shot at lasting peace with Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan has demanded sweeping concessions from its arch foe as part of a deal to end decades of hostility and conflict between the Caucasus rivals. Despite the tranquil scenes of a warm spring day, the issue has stirred worry in a fragile Armenian society, still reeling from a humiliating military defeat in 2023. Life 'is full of uncertainty', said Nare Barseghyan, a 25-year-old philologist. 'We have a divided society, toxic politics and a growing disrespect for our country,' she added. 'People shouldn't be constantly threatened that there will be a new war if we don't yield to Azerbaijani demands,' she said. Exodus Since the break-up of the Soviet Union, the Caucasian neighbours have fought several wars for control of the Karabakh region, which was historically part of Armenia. Officially recognised as part of Azerbaijan, it was ruled by pro-Armenian separatists for three decades. Azerbaijan recaptured it in a lightning 24-hour offensive in 2023, prompting more than 100,000 ethnic Armenians to flee the mountainous enclave. The defeat and exodus have deepened Armenia's political divisions and sparked street protests over the government's handling of the crisis. Seeking to move beyond the conflict, Baku and Yerevan agreed in March on the text of a broader peace treaty, hailed by some as a possible turning point in relations. But Azerbaijan is asking, among other demands, for Armenia to first amend its constitution to formally drop any territorial claims to Karabakh — a move that would sever its bond with a region perceived by Armenians as their ancestral homeland. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has signalled his readiness to comply for the sake of a lasting peace, announcing plans for a constitutional referendum in 2027. 'No security' The loss of Karabakh has splintered Armenian society. 'Some believe the issue of Artsakh is closed but most do not — because no nation can so easily give up a part of its homeland,' said Robert Matevosyan, 52, using the Armenian name for Karabakh. 'You can't close that chapter when every day you see people from Artsakh who've lost everything,' he added, referring to the Karabakh refugees who rushed to the relative safety of Armenia. Matevosyan, a softly spoken engineer and part-time tour guide, is from Syunik, a southern Armenian region that borders Azerbaijan. When he returns to his village of Kapan, with Azerbaijani military posts just a few hundred metres away, he said he feels the tension in the air. 'There is no security. Only the illusion of it,' he told AFP. He does not want Armenia to change its constitution 'under threat from Azerbaijan'. 'If anyone thinks this will bring peace, they're wrong. Azerbaijan doesn't want peace,' he said. Such doubts are widespread across Armenian society, where Pashinyan's proposed constitutional referendum dominates public discourse. 'The constitution shouldn't be changed under external pressure,' said Karine Hambardzumyan, a 65-year-old physicist. 'I don't want to build my life under someone else's threats. Let it be hard, let it be difficult — but let it be our choice.' 'Retake' Karabakh Many in Armenia still harbour hopes of one day reclaiming Karabakh. 'We should first build a strong country,' Hambardzumyan said. 'Then we will retake Artsakh.' Musician Vahan Artsruni, 59, struck a similar note. 'We can bring Artsakh back — not now, maybe, but in time. If we are united,' he said. 'I feel the same spirit I felt 30 years ago,' when Armenian forces took control of Karabakh following the Soviet Union's collapse. He dismissed the constitutional debate as 'one of many false agendas pushed by the government' and said he was not worried about the result. 'Given the extremely low level of trust in the government, it's already clear that even if the issue reaches a referendum, it won't pass,' he said.
The Sun
2 days ago
- The Sun
Armenian PM pushes to unseat influential church head
YEREVAN: Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on Tuesday urged followers of the influential Armenian Apostolic Church to help unseat its spiritual leader, Catholicos of All Armenians Garegin II. Relations between Pashinyan and the church leadership have sharply deteriorated in recent years. Garegin II repeatedly called for Pashinyan's resignation following Armenia's disastrous military defeats to arch-foe Azerbaijan over the then-disputed Karabakh region. The loss of Karabakh after Azerbaijan's lightning offensive in 2023 has divided Armenia, as its neighbour demands sweeping concessions in exchange for lasting peace. Last year, Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan led mass protests accusing Pashinyan of ceding territory to Azerbaijan -- a movement that ultimately failed to topple the prime minister. Now Pashinyan has launched an unprecedented challenge to Garegin II, urging believers on social media to form a 'coordination group' to organise the 'liberation' of the church and elect a new Catholicos. 'We need to create a coordination group to handle the organisational aspects of this agenda,' Pashinyan said on Telegram, specifying that members should be clergy and lay followers. Pashinyan and his wife in late May alleged that the Catholicos has a child which prompted fierce opposition criticism and calls for the couple's excommunication. Armenia -- the first nation to adopt Christianity as a state religion in the 4th century -- grants the Armenian Apostolic Church special constitutional status and the church wields considerable influence in Armenian society.
