Armenian
News Network / Groong
Guests
Hosts
Introduction
Hello,
and welcome to the Armenian News Network, Groong,
Week in Review. This show was recorded on Sunday, February 27, 2022.
This week we have
these topics on deck:
● Developments in the Ukraine Crisis
● Donetsk, Luhansk. Artsakh?
● Aliyev in Moscow
● Euronest in Yerevan
To talk about
these issues, we have with us:
Dr. Pietro Shakarian,
who is a Lecturer in History at the
American University of Armenia in Yerevan. His research focuses on the history
of Russia, Armenia, and the Caucasus.
and
Yeghia Tashjian, who is a
regional analyst and researcher based in Beirut, with expertise in China, Iran and the Persian Gulf. Tashjian
is Associate Fellow at the Issam Fares Institute for
Public Policy and International Affairs at the American University of Beirut
and hosts a monthly radio program called “Turkey Today”.
Topics This Week
Developments in the Ukraine Crisis
On this show
we’re supposed to be all about Armenia, yet Ukraine has stolen the center of
our attention for many weeks now. This was a particularly packed week full of
new developments. Most notably, Putin gave a long and angry speech on Monday
and recognized Donetsk and Luhansk as independent republics. He then launched a
full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
What happens from
here?
Putin said his
goal was to demilitarize and denazify Ukraine. Ukraine’s president Zelensky is Jewish (and
under pressure from the country’s far right)! Putin called his team a band of
drug addicts and neo-Nazis. Where does this narrative come from?
Zelensky called
on Turkey to help with defense, with blocking the Black Sea; thanked countries
for not recognizing the new republics; called for an “anti-war coalition” to
help defend Ukraine; called on the Bucharest Nine for defense aid; etc.
China was mostly
quiet, but yesterday laid out its fundamentals for resolving the crisis.
Putin invaded,
but left the door open to discussing a resolution.
Russians expect
Zelensky’s government to go.
Turkey confirmed
closure of the Dardanelles to Ukrainian and Russian Navies.
Putin had a lot
of contact with both Aliyev and Pashinyan this week. He met Aliyev in Moscow
and has talked with Pashinyan twice. Why?
Regions of Ukraine
Donetsk, Luhansk, Artsakh?
Within 24 hours
of Putin’s announcement of recognition of the new People’s Republics of Donetsk
and Luhansk, South Ossetia, Abkhaza, and Artsakh
expressed support and congratulations to the new republics.
● Are there valid parallels between Donetsk and
Luhansk, and Arsakh’s quests for independence?
Armenia’s MFA on
Wednesday said that following Russia’s suit in recognizing Donetsk and Luhansk
is “not on the agenda”. Ukraine, which has always sided with
Azerbaijan in the case of Artsakh’s cause, welcomed the stance.
● Should Armenia recognize? Should it not?
● Could Armenia quid pro quo recognition of
Donetsk & Luhansk with a Russian recognition of Artsakh?
○ Especially considering the “territorial
integrity” clause in Putin & Aliyev’s declaration of allied relations?
Armenia did not
recognize the Artsakh Republic, even during the 44-Day war. This is a fact that
Putin noted about, saying essentially that if we thought Nagorno-Karabakh
should be an independent country, why didn’t we recognize it?
● What value is there in recognizing Artsakh’s
independence at this point in time? Either by Armenia, or by anyone, in fact?
Aliyev in Moscow
Putin and Aliyev signed a
“Declaration on Allied Cooperation”. Putin was quoted in Tass as saying: "The current situation in
Nagorno-Karabakh is quite satisfactory, but certain problems still exist…”, and
called the document to be of “strategic character”.
Parliamentary Opposition Pativ Unem slammed the
Armenian government for its failed policies and mismanagement of relations with
strategic partner Russia.
●
How should we interpret this?
●
Why did Russia need such an alliance with
Azerbaijan at this point in time?
● What message is Russia sending to Turkey? to Armenia?
How should we interpret them?
Euronest in Yerevan
The Euronest
Assembly platform allows the EU parliament to meet with its Eastern partnership
members, former Soviet states Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova,
and Ukraine. The meetings rotate between these countries and this year it was held in Yerevan.
● What value does Euronest present for Armenia?
Unfortunately our
main takeaway from this meeting is about the two Azerbaijani MP’s who came to Yerevan, and almost literally
recited all of Aliyev’s propaganda points since the war, for example:
● All POWs have been returned.
● The conflict is settled, there is no Karabakh.
● The conquered lands are a “Hiroshima of the Caucasus”.
● Armenia destroying Azerbaijan’s culture.
Then these MPs
visited the Iranian Blue Mosque (Gök Jami) in Yerevan, took pictures and tweeted that the Mosque is Azeri and not
Iranian, and set off a fiery response
from the Iranian embassy. They also hinted that Yerevan is Azeri land, by
saying that “the real masters of the Blue Mosque will soon pray there”. All in
all, the Azerbaijani MPs made international fools of themselves in public.
There were
Armenian demonstrators in front of the Euronest meeting, with veteran’s
families protesting the presence of such disgusting propagandist hatemongers
being allowed in Yerevan.
European Values - Not Covered
On February 4
Prime Minister Pashinyan and President Aliyev had a teleconference summit
facilitated by French President Macron and European Council President Charles
Michel. Following this, Azerbaijan released 8 Armenian POWs, and then the EU announced a €2 billion financial aid package for
Azerbaijan, as part of
an economic investment plan. Throughout 2021, Aliyev has been badgering the EU
about the lack of financial aid parity with Armenia. So
he finally got it.
● What sense does it make, that the EU pretends to
create an illusion of parity between a sinister dictatorship in Azerbaijan, and
what it routinely acknowledges as a democracy in Armenia?
○ What interests is the EU protecting with such a
hypocritical action?
● How can Armenia protest the EU’s inconsistency
of values with its actions?
Topics from the Panelists
1. Hovik
- Hypocrisy of western leaders in peddling their values according to their
blatant self-interests.
2. Pietro
- The hypocrisy of the world order in judging nationalisms
3. Yeghia - You love Ukraine, but where was your sympathy
for Artsakh during the 44-Day War?
Wrap-up
That
was our Week in Review show, and we hope it helped you catch up with
some of the issues in and around Armenia from this past week. As always, we
invite your feedback and your suggestions. You can find us on most social media
and podcast platforms, or our website Groong.org.
Thanks
to Laura Osborn for the music on our podcasts. Don’t forget to subscribe to our
channel on YouTube, Like
our pages and follow us on social media. On behalf of everyone in this episode,
we wish you a good week, thanks for listening and we’ll talk to you next week.
Groong
Channels
●
Facebook
Group: Groong
- Armenian News Network
●
Facebook
Page: ANN
- Groong
●
YouTube: Armenian
News Network - Groong
●
Twitter: @groong
●
Telegram: Armenian News Network - Groong
●
Reddit: r/Groong
●
Instagram: ANNGroong
●
Website: Groong.org
●
Podcasts:
Apple, Google, Spotify, Amazon and more.
Search your preferred Podcast platform!
Subscribe and Listen to us on...
Keywords
Pietro Shakarian, Yeghia Tashjian, Armenia, Ukraine, Donbas, Donetsk, Luhansk,
Artsakh, Nagorno Karabakh, 44-day war, Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, Turkey,
Russia, Georgia, EU, Euronest, European Parliamentary Assembly, Gas, Pipelines,
EU, European Union, USA, NATO,