Covid has taken a monopoly on global issues. The western world is too preoccupied with the neverending US election. Europe and the Middle East are consumed because Macron pissed off many people for not reprimanding a dead person over some pictures. Anyway, it does not matter; a lot is going on in the world. One particular issue that I can’t get my mind off of is the ongoing conflict over Artsakh’s disputed territory, also known as Nagorno Karabakh.
I spent the last autumn in Tbilisi. During this time, I visited both Baku and Yerevan. I have also visited Yerevan a couple of other times in the past. I refuse to confirm or deny whether or not if I have been to Nagorno Karabakh or Artsakh. My master’s degree is in Geopolitical studies, and my main focus area was unrecognized states in the Post Soviet Sphere. In comparison, I am light-years and galaxies away from being an expert on this subject. I do know a few things, perhaps more than the average person.
It is not a conflict that I will adamantly pick a side on. Part of me might lean towards the Armenian side as I admittedly enjoyed it more while traveling. Armenia also has more historical ties to the land, as it being part of Azerbaijan legally is the result of a couple of flukes. Ilham Aliyev is also a pretty despicable character. However, my geopolitical studies background also acknowledges that there is more to it than just that. I could type hundreds of pages on this topic, but I don’t want to. I’m not Armenian or Azeri, nor do I have an attachment to either country. I can’t pretend that I do. I have friends on both sides of this conflict. Azerbaijan has the upper hand with Turkish support and having the international community recognize the disputed territory as officially part of Azerbaijan. Armenia has the diaspora influence, though. I’m not sure the big powers even want or care to intervene more than they have to. The only major actor who has actively engaged in this is Turkey, so this simply just enables Azerbaijan to commit more horrific atrocities. I’m not going to comment further on who should or shouldn’t have the territory.
The key message that I get from this conflict is that Isolationism is one of all evil roots. There is a strong unwillingness to compromise on both sides. Every ceasefire gets broken within hours. I was reading about a bombed maternity ward the other day in Stepanakert. There is currently a genocide watch. There were missiles sent to Ganja, Azerbaijan, last week. I can’t help to notice that most of the soldiers on both sides are younger than the conflict itself.
The younger generation is even more hostile towards the other side because they never had any exposure to the other side. Most of the other generations are not any better. I only know a few people around my age who are more open towards some dialogue, but these are people within a specific bubble of people. The vast majority of them have been subject to ” Our people first” and other kinds of tactics of brainwashing and historical revisionism. They both have their story and see no need to hear any other accounts. Isolationism and Nationalism breed these types of conflicts. Young people should be encouraged to travel, learn languages, or at the very least, have exposure to others that are different than them. Spending too much time among your tribe yields these results. We can’t vote for leaders that want to put ” Our county first.” We should have immigration policies that easily allow and encourage others to come to work and study in our countries. The best way to try to help the situation is to donate to civil society organizations in both countries. Create opportunities for youth to mobilize on both sides towards a path of understanding. The simplest thing we can do is not vote for leaders that support isolationist and nationalist policies in our own countries.
Make Dolmas, Not war