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Family Security Matters
Oct 9 2011
Armenia's Challenge
Darlene Casella
Happy 20th Birthday, Republic of Armenia. When you blew out candles
on your cake, no doubt thoughts wandered back in history to centuries
old struggles for existence as a people with a national identity.
Before succeeding from the USSR and creating an independent state; you
survived Roman, Byzantine, Arab, Persian and Ottoman Empires; and you
endured the first genocide of the twentieth century.
Armenia was the first nation to formally adopt Christianity, in the
4th century. The small nation is land locked amidst the Muslim
dominated countries of Azerbaijan, Georgia, Iran and Turkey.
Independence from the Soviet Union came to Armenia and Azerbaijan in
1991; both claimed Nagorno Karabakh, an Armenian populated region
assigned to Soviet Azerbaijan in the 1920s. Peace was negotiated and
Nagorno Karabakh declared independence in 1994. Conflicts continue as
independence is not recognized by Azerbaijan. Turkey backs Azerbaijan;
Armenia backs Karabakh.
Iran offers to be a mediator with the Organization for Security and
Cooperation in Europe, which handles the Karabakh dispute. The
American Embassy in Armenia has no ambassador. Mathew Bryza, an
American envoy, said in a press interview on October 4th, 2011 that
Iran cannot be a mediator in that peace process.
Due to the Karabakh dispute, Turkey closed the Armenian border in 1994
and has an embargo. Armenia is kept out of projects such as the
Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline, the Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum natural gas
pipeline, and the Kars-Tbilisi-Baku railway. Turkey closed the rail
line from Kars to Baku. Armenian trade and economic growth are at
grave disadvantage. All efforts to thaw relations with Turkey have
ended in failure.
Coal, natural gas, and oil have not been found in Armenia. She suffers
energy shortages due to the blockade. Two nuclear reactors were
commissioned by the Soviets in 1979; and shut down in 1988 after the
Spitak Earthquake. A reactor at the Metsamor Nuclear Power Plant, 10
miles from the Turkish border, is being restarted. Turkey is in an
uproar.
Armenia's Environmental Committee Chairman, Samuel Shahinian, said
`Our people are so cold; we just want them to be warm. Everyone should
realize that we have no other choice.'
ARMROS Gazprom transports natural gas from Russia to Armenia via
Georgia through the Caucasus Mountains. Repairs have just been
completed to correct an interruption in that supply. Russia remains
Armenia's strategic ally.
Despite religious and ideological differences, the Islamic Republic of
Iran, maintains good relations with Armenia. Projects that will
supply Iranian natural gas into Armenia with a future goal of a
pipeline that will bring gas to Europe through Georgia and the Black
Sea have begun. There is a project in construction of two hydro
electric plants on the Arax River which is on the border of Armenia
and Iran. Armenia is building a super highway to Iran.
At the 66th session of the United Nations last week, President Serzh
Sargosian delivered a speech stating that Azerbaijan and Turkey
impede normalization efforts regarding Karabakh. `Two decades ago
the people of Nagorno-Karabakh made a choice, and exercised their
right to self determination. They have survived war and bloodshed to
earn their freedom. Karabakh is not only about land, it is about
people.' He continued `Turkey continues to engage in policy to deny
the Ottoman-era genocide of Armenians between 1915 - 1918.'
President Medvedev has meetings planned in Russia this month with
Sargosian. Vladimir Putin's announcement to replace Medvedev as the
Russian President causes new questions for Armenia. Robert Kocharyan,
Armenia's former President, is a close friend of Putin. Months ago
he increased his media presence and published a book filled with his
heroic deeds. The `Putin Factor' is causing Armenian speculation. In
an interview on Media Max, Robert Kocharyan said that he doesn't rule
out the possibility of his return to big politics. `I am amazed that
my possible return is linked to political processes in Russia'.
The revered Mustafa Ataturk Kemal founded the modern Turkish Republic
in 1923. In an interview with the Los Angeles Examiner he said `These
left over young Turks should have been made to account for the
millions of our Christian subjects who were driven from their homes
and massacred.' Prime Minister Erdogan unwinds Ataturk's dream; he
blockades Armenia and denies the Ottoman massacre. Armenia turns
towards Iran, a warm neighbor in the cold Caucasus Mountains.
Family Security Matters Contributor Darlene Casella was, before her
retirement, an English teacher, a stockbroker, and president/owner of
a small corporation. She lives with her husband in , California, and
can be reached at [email protected] Quinta
http://www.familysecuritymatters.org/publications/id.10542/pub_detail.asp
Oct 9 2011
Armenia's Challenge
Darlene Casella
Happy 20th Birthday, Republic of Armenia. When you blew out candles
on your cake, no doubt thoughts wandered back in history to centuries
old struggles for existence as a people with a national identity.
Before succeeding from the USSR and creating an independent state; you
survived Roman, Byzantine, Arab, Persian and Ottoman Empires; and you
endured the first genocide of the twentieth century.
Armenia was the first nation to formally adopt Christianity, in the
4th century. The small nation is land locked amidst the Muslim
dominated countries of Azerbaijan, Georgia, Iran and Turkey.
Independence from the Soviet Union came to Armenia and Azerbaijan in
1991; both claimed Nagorno Karabakh, an Armenian populated region
assigned to Soviet Azerbaijan in the 1920s. Peace was negotiated and
Nagorno Karabakh declared independence in 1994. Conflicts continue as
independence is not recognized by Azerbaijan. Turkey backs Azerbaijan;
Armenia backs Karabakh.
Iran offers to be a mediator with the Organization for Security and
Cooperation in Europe, which handles the Karabakh dispute. The
American Embassy in Armenia has no ambassador. Mathew Bryza, an
American envoy, said in a press interview on October 4th, 2011 that
Iran cannot be a mediator in that peace process.
Due to the Karabakh dispute, Turkey closed the Armenian border in 1994
and has an embargo. Armenia is kept out of projects such as the
Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline, the Baku-Tbilisi-Erzurum natural gas
pipeline, and the Kars-Tbilisi-Baku railway. Turkey closed the rail
line from Kars to Baku. Armenian trade and economic growth are at
grave disadvantage. All efforts to thaw relations with Turkey have
ended in failure.
Coal, natural gas, and oil have not been found in Armenia. She suffers
energy shortages due to the blockade. Two nuclear reactors were
commissioned by the Soviets in 1979; and shut down in 1988 after the
Spitak Earthquake. A reactor at the Metsamor Nuclear Power Plant, 10
miles from the Turkish border, is being restarted. Turkey is in an
uproar.
Armenia's Environmental Committee Chairman, Samuel Shahinian, said
`Our people are so cold; we just want them to be warm. Everyone should
realize that we have no other choice.'
ARMROS Gazprom transports natural gas from Russia to Armenia via
Georgia through the Caucasus Mountains. Repairs have just been
completed to correct an interruption in that supply. Russia remains
Armenia's strategic ally.
Despite religious and ideological differences, the Islamic Republic of
Iran, maintains good relations with Armenia. Projects that will
supply Iranian natural gas into Armenia with a future goal of a
pipeline that will bring gas to Europe through Georgia and the Black
Sea have begun. There is a project in construction of two hydro
electric plants on the Arax River which is on the border of Armenia
and Iran. Armenia is building a super highway to Iran.
At the 66th session of the United Nations last week, President Serzh
Sargosian delivered a speech stating that Azerbaijan and Turkey
impede normalization efforts regarding Karabakh. `Two decades ago
the people of Nagorno-Karabakh made a choice, and exercised their
right to self determination. They have survived war and bloodshed to
earn their freedom. Karabakh is not only about land, it is about
people.' He continued `Turkey continues to engage in policy to deny
the Ottoman-era genocide of Armenians between 1915 - 1918.'
President Medvedev has meetings planned in Russia this month with
Sargosian. Vladimir Putin's announcement to replace Medvedev as the
Russian President causes new questions for Armenia. Robert Kocharyan,
Armenia's former President, is a close friend of Putin. Months ago
he increased his media presence and published a book filled with his
heroic deeds. The `Putin Factor' is causing Armenian speculation. In
an interview on Media Max, Robert Kocharyan said that he doesn't rule
out the possibility of his return to big politics. `I am amazed that
my possible return is linked to political processes in Russia'.
The revered Mustafa Ataturk Kemal founded the modern Turkish Republic
in 1923. In an interview with the Los Angeles Examiner he said `These
left over young Turks should have been made to account for the
millions of our Christian subjects who were driven from their homes
and massacred.' Prime Minister Erdogan unwinds Ataturk's dream; he
blockades Armenia and denies the Ottoman massacre. Armenia turns
towards Iran, a warm neighbor in the cold Caucasus Mountains.
Family Security Matters Contributor Darlene Casella was, before her
retirement, an English teacher, a stockbroker, and president/owner of
a small corporation. She lives with her husband in , California, and
can be reached at [email protected] Quinta
http://www.familysecuritymatters.org/publications/id.10542/pub_detail.asp