Tweet
TOUGH CHOICES: 'NEUTRAL' ARMENIA URGED TO CONDEMN CHEMICAL ATTACK IN SYRIA AS REGIONAL TENSIONS GROW
http://armenianow.com/commentary/analysis/44978/armenia_iran_syria_chemical_attack
ANALYSIS | 03.04.13 | 14:44
By NAIRA HAYRUMYAN
ArmeniaNow correspondent
Armenia has made no official statement yet on the recent alleged
use of chemical weapons by rebels fighting the Assad regime in Syria
after Iran urged it to condemn the crime.
Armenian Deputy Foreign Minister Shavarsh Kocharian received the
visiting Iranian Foreign Ministry representative Ramin Mehmanparast
in Yerevan on April 1. The official report on the meeting gives
only general information about "the millennial history of the two
countries, cooperation in the economic and cultural spheres." But
the officially released information also has one line that says:
"The two sides discussed regional issues, stressing the importance
of their solutions by peaceful means."
Why Mehmanparast was in Armenia and whether he relayed any message
to the Armenian authorities is not yet known. What is known, though,
is that a day before that Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi
called on Armenia to condemn "the latest deadly chemical attack near
the north-western Syrian city of Aleppo, which led to the deaths of
dozens of people."
That message was delivered to Armenian Minister of Foreign Affairs
Edward Nalbandian during his March 31 meeting with Iranian Ambassador
to Armenia Mohammad Reis Salehi. In that message the Iranian official
described the attack as "inhuman" and put the blame on militants in
Syria and their foreign sponsors.
The first report about the use of chemical weapons by rebels came
from Damascus on March 19. It said that 25 people were killed and 110
seriously injured as a result of the attack by rebels in the village
of Khan al-Asal (Aleppo province). Syria urged the UN Security Council
to condemn the act. Meanwhile, the Syrian opposition claims that the
chemical weapons were used by the government. The UN has appointed
an examination of the matter that may result in a major escalation
of the conflict in the Middle Eastern country that has been engulfed
in civil war since early 2011.
The use of chemical weapons is a condition in the presence of which
world powers reserve the right to make a military intervention
in Syria. The world media are full of alarming reports that such
interference is possible in the near future, and it cannot but disturb
Iran, which is, perhaps, the only ally of the Syrian leadership in
the region.
Political analysts believe that the visit of an Iranian diplomatic
representative to Armenia was probably connected with the situation
in Syria, where a lot of ethnic Armenians still remain.
Chairman of the Union of Political Scientists of Armenia Hmayak
Hovhannisyan believes that Armenian authorities must take concrete
steps to protect the Armenian community in Syria, especially as "the
weapons to the opposition had been provided by Turkey." Hovhannisyan
said that all attempts to maintain neutrality aimed at ensuring that
Armenians avoid physical pressure and violence from either side have
not been successful, he claimed.
However, some experts also do not rule out that Mehmanparast's visit
could have been connected with events in the Karabakh conflict zone.
The Armenian Defense Ministry has been reporting some activity of
Azerbaijani special units along the border with Armenia. Meanwhile,
Azerbaijan has been toughening its rhetoric, and recently the
foreign ministers of Georgia, Turkey and Azerbaijan declared about
the establishment of an axis of cooperation.
There are also growing tensions in relations between Iran and
Azerbaijan, which apparently also prompts better coordination between
Tehran and Yerevan.
http://armenianow.com/commentary/analysis/44978/armenia_iran_syria_chemical_attack
ANALYSIS | 03.04.13 | 14:44
By NAIRA HAYRUMYAN
ArmeniaNow correspondent
Armenia has made no official statement yet on the recent alleged
use of chemical weapons by rebels fighting the Assad regime in Syria
after Iran urged it to condemn the crime.
Armenian Deputy Foreign Minister Shavarsh Kocharian received the
visiting Iranian Foreign Ministry representative Ramin Mehmanparast
in Yerevan on April 1. The official report on the meeting gives
only general information about "the millennial history of the two
countries, cooperation in the economic and cultural spheres." But
the officially released information also has one line that says:
"The two sides discussed regional issues, stressing the importance
of their solutions by peaceful means."
Why Mehmanparast was in Armenia and whether he relayed any message
to the Armenian authorities is not yet known. What is known, though,
is that a day before that Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi
called on Armenia to condemn "the latest deadly chemical attack near
the north-western Syrian city of Aleppo, which led to the deaths of
dozens of people."
That message was delivered to Armenian Minister of Foreign Affairs
Edward Nalbandian during his March 31 meeting with Iranian Ambassador
to Armenia Mohammad Reis Salehi. In that message the Iranian official
described the attack as "inhuman" and put the blame on militants in
Syria and their foreign sponsors.
The first report about the use of chemical weapons by rebels came
from Damascus on March 19. It said that 25 people were killed and 110
seriously injured as a result of the attack by rebels in the village
of Khan al-Asal (Aleppo province). Syria urged the UN Security Council
to condemn the act. Meanwhile, the Syrian opposition claims that the
chemical weapons were used by the government. The UN has appointed
an examination of the matter that may result in a major escalation
of the conflict in the Middle Eastern country that has been engulfed
in civil war since early 2011.
The use of chemical weapons is a condition in the presence of which
world powers reserve the right to make a military intervention
in Syria. The world media are full of alarming reports that such
interference is possible in the near future, and it cannot but disturb
Iran, which is, perhaps, the only ally of the Syrian leadership in
the region.
Political analysts believe that the visit of an Iranian diplomatic
representative to Armenia was probably connected with the situation
in Syria, where a lot of ethnic Armenians still remain.
Chairman of the Union of Political Scientists of Armenia Hmayak
Hovhannisyan believes that Armenian authorities must take concrete
steps to protect the Armenian community in Syria, especially as "the
weapons to the opposition had been provided by Turkey." Hovhannisyan
said that all attempts to maintain neutrality aimed at ensuring that
Armenians avoid physical pressure and violence from either side have
not been successful, he claimed.
However, some experts also do not rule out that Mehmanparast's visit
could have been connected with events in the Karabakh conflict zone.
The Armenian Defense Ministry has been reporting some activity of
Azerbaijani special units along the border with Armenia. Meanwhile,
Azerbaijan has been toughening its rhetoric, and recently the
foreign ministers of Georgia, Turkey and Azerbaijan declared about
the establishment of an axis of cooperation.
There are also growing tensions in relations between Iran and
Azerbaijan, which apparently also prompts better coordination between
Tehran and Yerevan.