BY APPO JABARIAN
Executive Publisher / Managing Editor
USA Armenian Life Magazine (English-language print edition)
USA Armenian Life E-Newsletter (Electronic Distribution — e-blast)
Hye Kiank Armenian Weekly (Armenian-language print edition)
USA Armenian LifeFACEBOOK
www.armenianlife.com
Turkey and Azerbaijan have been very unhappy with their synchronized blockade of Armenia since 1991. Because the blockade became an auto-blockade — a sort of self-inflicted political/economic wound for both Ankara and Baku.
Since the 1991 blockade, succeeding Turkish governments have been hoping that the anti-Armenia blockade would bring Armenia down to her knees.
In the initial stages of the blockade, Armenia experienced some great challenges, but eventually, thanks to her proactive Diaspora and friendly nations, Armenia overcame her difficulties and moved on with her state-building mission.
Now 30 years later and after the joint Turkey/Azerbaijan/ISIS anti-Armenia aggression during the 44-Day War in 2020, Turkey and Azerbaijan are deeply frustrated that they still couldn’t occupy Meghri corridor in Southern Armenia connecting Turkey with Azerbaijan and Turkic states in Central Asia.
Armenia has not and will not discuss the provision of a “corridor” or anything resembling a “corridor” to Azerbaijan, Armenia’s Deputy Prime Minister Mher Grigoryan said on Tuesday, August 31,
And now, Turkish Pres. Erdogan is cajoling Armenia’s PM Pashinyan into nurturing a new ‘friendship.’ But will Yerevan be misguided by naivete?
PM Nikol Pashinyan is right to insist that any normalization of relations with Turkey should be done without any preconditions.
World Armenians are fully aware that Ankara is driven by Turkish conniving and once Armenia starts giving in, Turkish appetite for more concessions will have no limits.
Turkey often behaves as if the Armenian twin states are left alone. But it must be made aware that Armenia and Artsakh are fully backed by the Armenian Nation which consists of Armenians in the twin republics of Armenia and Armenian Diaspora.
Whenever Turkey and it’s President come up with a conniving ‘offer’ to the Republic of Armenia, they must bear in mind that when Turkey or Azerbaijan deal with Armenia or Artsakh/Nagorno Karabakh, by default they are dealing with the entire Armenian Nation as both republics are an integral part of that virtual nation. Of course, it’s understandable that Ankara and Baku continuously vie to alienate Armenia from her vast Diaspora. But to no avail.
Turkey has repeatedly stated that its number one enemy is the Armenian Diaspora!
While Turkey is feigns being an advocate of ‘peace’ with Armenia, some reports are trickling in on unconfirmed news that Turkey is amassing ISIS terrorists embedded among the Afghan refugees in Eastern Turkey/occupied Western Armenia’s Van district. Their numbers are purported to be in several thousands. While western news agencies are erroneously reporting that Turkey is “not welcoming the Afghan refugees,” some sources claim that Turkey is using the refugees as cover to bring into the South Caucasus region more ISIS terrorists in order to attack Armenia and Artsakh.
Many independent observers in Armenia and Artsakh state that the Armenian republic is not ready to open its markets to Turkish capital as many predict that penetration of Turkish workers and businesses into Armenian markets will most certainly derail Armenian economic growth and make Armenia a pro-Turkish vassal state.
The Turkish preconditions for a “gradual normalization” of relations overtly and covertly pursue objectives that are detrimental to the interests of Armenia and the Armenian Nation.
The following are the Turkish-peddled adverse conditions:
1) Armenia and Armenian Diaspora renounce international recognition of the Armenian Genocide, including in Turkey;
2) Armenia and Armenian Diaspora renounce the claim of ancestral lands in Wilsonian/Western Armenia illegally occupied by Turkey and recognize the territorial integrity of Turkey;
3) Armenia and the Armenian Nation in general refuse to pursue compensation for the Armenian Genocide for
A) The blood money of the one and one half million victims;
B) The real and personal properties of the victims seized and/or illegally confiscated by Turkey;
4) Armenia recognizes the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan at the current border situation without the return of the Azerbaijani-occupied lands of
Artsakh and without a just solution to the status of Artsakh Republic.
In general, keeping Turkey under self-inflicted siege continues to be beneficial to Iran, Georgia, Russia, the United States, EU, Greece, Cyprus, the Middle Eastern region and Armenia.