Armenians will be Victorious
Posted on October. 31. 2020
BY GARBIS KORAJIAN
In the last five weeks, we have witnessed the unjustified war that has taken place on the margins of our ancestral land. As our brave young soldiers fiercely fight the coward Azeri, Turkish and ISIS soldiers, the entire global Armenian diaspora is closely following and monitoring these developments. Mothers are grieving for the loss of loved ones, while the sisters and brothers of the deceased are voluntarily enlisting in the army to avenge the losses of their brethren. Not only are relatives joining forces to fight the enemy, young and old recruits from the four corners of this earth are departing for Armenia to take part in the war. In an unprecedented display of unity and solidarity, the diaspora has joined hands and has shown their unequivocal support by protesting the Azeri and Turkish aggressions on the streets of major cities such as Los Angeles, New York, Boston, Paris, Berlin, Vancouver, Montreal, Toronto, all the way to Brazil, Mexico, Columbia and beyond. So far, the Armenia Fund has raised approximately $200 million US Dollars to assist in the war efforts. Other major organizations have done the same. At stake is the survival of our nation.
Unfortunately, in addition to the war itself, enemy drones have indiscriminately bombed the peaceful citizens of Stepanakert and Shushi. So far, we have lost over 700 of our brave soldiers and 300 civilians. This barbaric behaviour points to one thing: the plan to eradicate the Armenian inhabitants of the Caucasus. In fact, this is undeniably a continuation of the Genocide that began in 1915.
Although the number of soldiers and military arsenal of the enemy is 10 times that of Armenia/Artsakh, our soldiers have so far been holding strong. They have been fighting tooth and nail to defend the borders of our homeland, Mer Hairenik. After holding the border firm over the last month, we have just received news that the Azeri and Turkish soldiers are 5 kilometers from Shushi. We are all confident that Shushi will be protected by our brave soldiers as it is crucial to secure this town for the existence of Artsakh. After this war is over, I have no doubt, the joint forces of Armenia and Artsakh will emerge victorious.
Having said that, there some important lessons that we should learn from this war:
- We are all alone in this world.
No country has seriously come to our aid. It has been all small talk and no action. Unfortunately, Russia, an ally, which has a military pact to help Armenia during times of war, has not held up their end of this alliance to help our country in the face of brutal attacks from Azeri, Turkish and Syrian mercenaries. Similarly, the US Secretary of State, Mr. Pompeo has only manifested some supporting words here and there, brokering a failed ceasefire, while the Trump administration remains closely allied with Turkish President Erdogan. President Macron of France has done better. However, words of support are not enough to stop Erdogan’s Ottoman ambitions of Pan Turkism to occupy and dominate the entire Turkic speaking nations, including Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan, who all share a common border with China. To achieve these ambitions, Turkey is actively involved in the war, and has recruited ISIS mercenaries from Syria and Libya. Pakistan is also sending its mercenaries to appease Turkey. In the last day or so, Turkey has sent 1,200 strong commando units that were originally trained to fight Kurdish forces in the rough mountainous terrains and severe climates. At present, these Turkish commando forces are replacing Azeri soldiers on the frontlines.
Turkey is a member of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), and this direct aggression on Armenia/ Artsakh can only be interpreted as an attack from all NATO members. Most all other NATO allies have remained silent. Some American and European cities, and the Australian state of New South Wales have taken the bold step to recognize Artsakh’s independence. Such genuine attempts to respect the self-determination of this autonomous region are very encouraging, however, no country has yet to come out and publicly support the independence of Artsakh.
Going back in history, when Ethiopia was invaded by fascist Italy during the Second World War, no Western country objected nor condemned the atrocities committed on a Christian nation. The Western world remained silent, similar to our so-called American friends who have remained tongue-tied when the enemy forces are committing yet another Genocide against our people.
Throughout history, it has been the inaction of those who could have acted, the indifference of these who should have known better, the silence in the face of violence and injustice when it mattered most, which has made it possible for evil to triumph. – Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia - The former three Armenian governments were busy squandering and robbing the wealth of this poor nation for personal gain by ignoring the needs of the country and its army. These corrupt leaders have yet to be severely punished and their ill-gotten assets confiscated.
From the moment Armenia declared independence from the Soviet Union, our last three presidents and their organized mafia friends made a point of indiscriminately robbing the resources of this poor and newly emerging nation. During Der-Petrosian’s presidency, all the factories left behind from the Soviet era, including our railway lines, were dismantled piece by piece and sold as scrap metal to Iran and Turkey, the proceeds of which went to enrich a few low-level gangsters who are millionaires today. When Kocharyan came to power, he made sure his family and close friends took possession of all of the natural resources of Armenia, from gold to molybdenum and copper mines. Some of these resources were sold to Russian investors. Under Kocharyan and later during Sargsyan’s presidency, all of the important factories, hotels, and ownership of businesses were systematically transferred to the ruling families and their friends. As a result, over one million Armenians left their beloved country, as they could not find jobs to provide them with a living wage to afford the basic necessities for their families. While the poor were starving, the rich oligarchs lived lavishly, no less than the billionaires in rich countries do.
Corruption in all public and private sectors became rampant while these THUGS ruled mercilessly with an iron fist – beating, arresting and, if necessary, killing poor Armenian citizens who opposed the government of the day. Throughout all of this, the military was active and our troops protected our borders without being provided adequate food, proper shoes or military attire, while their guns had very limited ammunition to fight the enemy forces. The lack of preparedness or government support, combined with a lack of modern military equipment was a consequence of corruption and has resulted in the loss of almost 1000 of our young soldiers. I am sure most of us will never forget the incident where the so-called General Manuel was feeding the food donated to the soldiers to his zoo animals. Not only that, the children of these THUGS were living lavishly in mansions and driving expensive cars, gallivanting around the globe, while the sons of the poor were dying on the border to sustain the livelihood of these hooligans. As a result of such abuses, today, our military is in a deplorable condition and we are losing so many lives. These presidents have the fresh blood of our soldiers on their hands. They must be held accountable!
After the war is over, all the last three presidents and their criminal friends should and must face military tribunals. They have to provide answers for their crimes and be sent to prison while their ill-gotten assets, including their fancy homes and businesses, should be confiscated and returned back to the state. - Artsakh and Armenia should unite and become one country.
This point does not require any explanation. Artsakh is Armenia! Artsakh should reunite with Armenia and form a new country. Then recognition of Artsakh as an independent country should start with Armenia. After that, the details of reunification will be worked out. - Armenians in the diaspora should and must help their brothers and sisters in our ancestral homeland, financially and in every other way possible.
As we have witnessed, in the last month, Armenians from all over the world have united against the Azeri and Turkish invasion of our motherland. This kind of unity and collaboration has to extend further, where Armenians become more involved in Armenia in every facet, similar to the global Jewish population and their unquestionable devotion, financial and political help, and repatriation to their ancestral land. Although the $200 million raised to help the war looks impressive, if we divide that amount amongst the 8 million Armenians living in the diaspora, it averages to 25 USD per person. I am sure we can do a lot better than that. - In the end, Armenia will be victorious
I have no doubt about that. Our soldiers and the rest of our volunteers, including those who joined from the diaspora, will make Armenia/ Artsakh victorious. Armenia will win and live for another 5000+ years.
After having discussed these five points, next week, I will go over the ongoing negotiation process that started in 1994 to the present. I will try to make some recommendations for a peaceful resolution, even if it means trading horses for the permanent peace and security of our Hairenik.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Garbis Korajian is a consultant for the World Bank, Canadian Int’l Development Agency (CIDA), the United States Agency for International
Development (USAID), the United Nation Development Agency (UNDP), the
Government of China and the Foreign Affairs Ministry in Nagorno-Karabakh; a graduate of Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government in Public Administration specializing in Ethical Leadership, an
international consultant and trainer on Good Governance, Ethical Leadership, Anti-corruption education and social accountability.