ArmInfo. Where and at what point it was decided that there should be a multi-thousand-strong Azerbaijani community in Armenia, and the Republic itself should enter into an alliance with Turkey and Azerbaijan. Political observer at the Politeconomy Research Institute, political scientist Beniamin Matevosyan asks.
He recalled that following the meeting of the Foreign Ministers of Armenia, Azerbaijan and the Russian Federation, Sergey Lavrov issued a statement in which it was noted that Baku and Yerevan "are ready to provide guarantees on a mutual basis for ensuring the rights of national minorities in their territories." "Lavrov's statement immediately gave rise to a new round of discussions in Armenia, on the topic that "Russia is forcing Pashinyan to also bring the multi-thousand-strong Azerbaijani community to the RA."
There are questions to RF Ministry of Foreign Affairs about "a wagon and a small cart", and in this case, Russia also chose the path of not forming a negotiating agenda, but adjusting to what has already been agreed in the West," the expert stated. At the same time, the political scientist believes that, however, a complex of questions should be dealt with: At what point and where did the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh become an "ethnic minority", at what point and where did it become known that the multi-thousand-strong Azerbaijani community should be resettled in Armenia, at what point and where was it announced that as a result of these transformations, the RA should enter into a regional union with Baku and Ankara?
In this vein, he recalled that in 2023, 2 multi-day rounds of negotiations between Armenia and Azerbaijan took place in Washington. He added that following the results of the May round, the American Voice of America, citing a high-ranking American diplomat, reported that one of the issues discussed by the parties is "the attitude towards ethnic minorities in both countries", which concerns the "rights and security of ethnic minorities."
"In other words, on the Western negotiation track, Nikol Pashinyan agreed on the resettlement of the multi- thousand-strong Azerbaijani community in the RA, which a diplomat from the State Department told about in May.
It is also important that the attitude towards the Armenians of the NKR as an "ethnic minority in Azerbaijan" was also recorded in May of this year, which is confirmed by Charles Michel's statement following the results of the May negotiations between Nikol Pashinyan and Ilham Aliyev.
The geopolitical reshaping of the region, which is clearly visible following the results of negotiations on the western platform, also indicates that the transformation will not end only with Karabakh being a part of Azerbaijan and the resettlement of tens of thousands of Azerbaijanis in Armenia, it also includes the formation of a new regional military-political union of Ankara, Baku and Yerevan," Matevosyan believes.
He added that Louis Bono, the senior adviser of the US State Department, said during the Washington negotiations: "The United States is committed to ensuring that the parties regulate their relations, can live together, and also strengthen economic ties and even ensure collective security in the region." "Collective security" implies the formation of a military-political union between Armenia and Azerbaijan, and since the United States is deprived of the opportunity "on the ground to quickly coordinate processes" in the region, Turkey should become the "supervisor" in this union.
It was this agenda of "regionalization" that N. Pashinyan began to develop immediately after the meeting in Washington: during his penultimate press conference, he stated that "RA is looking for guarantees of security in the region," and in his opening speech during the last press conference he stated on the need to conduct a "regional non-confrontational policy" and "clarification of the place and role of the Republic of Armenia in the architecture of the regional future."
With such formulations, Pashinyan signals precisely that Yerevan is on the path of forming a temporary union with Turkey and Azerbaijan.
Why "temporary union"? Azerbaijan and Turkey will not miss the historic chance to "close issues with Armenia" after the Russian contingent is withdrawn from here," he added.
"However, returning to the last July meeting in Moscow: is it in this format that Russia sees "stable and long-term peace in the region" and therefore decided to simply "adjust to the Armenian-Azerbaijani (actually American) agenda? Yes, of course, if the Russian Federation leaves Karabakh and Armenia, it will only lose its positions, while Karabakh and Armenia will most likely be "strangled" in the "Turkish- Azerbaijani sack", however, the developments in the South Caucasus will certainly affect the developments in the North Caucasus," summed up Matevosyan.
It should be noted that following the results of the trilateral meeting in Moscow, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov stated:" Armenia is aware of the importance of convincing Nagorno-Karabakh Armenians to hold meetings with Azerbaijani representatives as soon as possible to coordinate their rights under the relevant legislation and Azerbaijan's international commitments, including numerous conventions on the rights of national minorities. Azerbaijan, acting on a mutually agreed basis, is also ready to provide the same guarantees to persons residing on its territory. Armenia is ready to act likewise regarding the application of these conventions to people residing in the Republic of Armenia," he said.