International Conference will consider foreign policies and conflicts in Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia

UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN TO BRING TOGETHER SOUTH CAUCASUS DIPLOMATS AND SCHOLARS

University of Michigan (Ann Arbor)
Armenian Studies Program
1080 S. University, Suite 4640
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1106
Tel: (734) 764-0350
Fax: (734) 764-8523
Contact: Sara Sarkisian
Email: sarkisia@umich.edu

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

During four days in October the Ann Arbor campus of the University of
Michigan will become the gathering point for diplomats and scholars who,
for the past 15 years, have been involved in the shaping or study of the
foreign policies and conflict resolution processes of Armenia,
Azerbaijan, and Georgia.

The international conference, titled “Armenia/the South Caucasus and
Foreign Policy Challenges,” is being organized by the Armenian Studies
Program at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and will be held at
the main campus of the University on October 21-24, 2004. The conference
is co-sponsored by the International Institute, the Center for Middle
Eastern and North African Studies, the Center for Russian and East
European Studies, The Department of History, the Near Eastern Studies
Department and the Political Science Department.

This unique gathering will bring together some thirty-five scholars,
past and present diplomats, and conflict negotiators from over ten
countries, including Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey, Russia, Iran,
the European Union, Canada, and the US to discuss the challenges faced
by these republics in developing policies in a fast changing world, the
path traveled in resolving outstanding conflicts, with special emphasis
on the Nagorno Karabakh problem.

The goals of the conference are (1) to acquaint the University and
larger community in the country with the specific issues and challenges
that relate to a part of the world that has acquired increased
significance in the last decade; (2) to place in historical and
international perspectives the path traveled by Armenia and the South
Caucasus since the break up of the USSR; (3) to reflect on the
perceptions and policies adopted in the 1990s by the South Caucasus
republics, their neighbors, and international actors; (4) to assist the
academic and policy making communities–in the region and in the
international community– in redefining and refining their approaches to
the region; and, (5) possibly develop ideas and approaches that might
enhance conflict resolution, regional cooperation, and long term
integration of the region in the international community to the benefit
the peoples of the region.

“This conference will provide a rare opportunity for interaction between
scholars and diplomats who have been involved in the study of the region
or in negotiations to end conflicts in the South Caucasus, specially the
problem of Nagorno Karabakh,” stated Prof. Gerard Libaridian (Department
of History), the organizer of the conference.

The South Caucasus region has acquired increased strategic significance
since the collapse of the USSR. It has as immediate neighbors Russia,
Turkey and Iran, each with its own interests and concerns; the US has
projected its own strategic view on the region; while Europe considers
it part of its extended neighborhood. Caspian Sea hydrocarbon resources
and their export routes have added another dimension to regional
politics, complicating further the challenges faced by the three
republics in balancing the sometimes conflicting interests of bigger
neighbors and the West.

“While it may be possible to argue that the Cold War ended with the
disintegration of the Soviet Union,” explained Libaridian; “the Caucasus
is one region where a mini-Cold War has survived. Events in the region
highlight the character and impact of changes in the international order
while the conflicts there constitute and challenge to the world
community and the current understanding of the nation-state concept. The
South Caucasus has the potential of turning into a model for
international cooperation and integration of interests or turning into
the next hot spot of generalized conflict and confrontation.”

Professor Kevork Bardakjian, Director of the Armenian Studies Program at
the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, considers the conference another
milestone in the development of Armenian Studies at the University.
“Armenia and Armenians have been an integral part of many ‘worlds,’
often at the critical junctures of cultural, strategic and political
meeting points,” stated Prof. Bardakjian. “We consider this conference
an example of the expansion of our vision of and perspective on Armenian
Studies. The support of the University and its specialized institutes,
centers and departments is testimony to the shared understanding of
Armenian Studies as an integral part of the social sciences and
humanities,” he added.

The conference will be open to the general public. All sessions will
provide ample opportunity for the attending public to participate in the
question and answer and discussion segments. Information on the
conference is available on the website of the University of Michigan
Armenian Studies Program, Inquiries can be
made by writing to Sara Sarkisian <mailto:sarkisia@umich.edu>
(sarkisia@umich.edu). All sessions will take place at the Alumni Center,
main campus.
The preliminary program of the conference is presented below.

INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE

“ARMENIA/THE SOUTH CAUCASUS AND FOREIGN POLICY CHALLENGES”

THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN, ANN ARBOR/OCTOBER 21-24, 2004

PRELIMINARY PROGRAM
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 21
Day One
5:00 – 5:30 PM
OPENING

1. Prof. Gerard Libaridian

Department of History, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
Opening Remarks

2. Prof. Mark Tessler

Vice-Provost for International Affairs; Director of the
International Institute; Political Science Department,
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
Introduction to the Conference

5:30 PM – 7:00 PM

PANEL I EVOLVING INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND THE SOUTH CAUCASUS

How have the collapse of the USSR and events of worldwide significance
since affected our understanding of international relations and
relations between states? What has been the impact of these changes
on the way states like those in the South Caucasus integrate in the
world community? How have perceptions of the South Caucasus changed
considering developments in the Near East?

1. Dr. Vitaly Naumkin

Director, International Center for Strategic and Political
Studies, Russia

2. Prof. Hadi Semati

International Relations Department, Tehran University
Currently at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace,
Washington, DC

3. Prof. Michael Kennedy

Department of Sociology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 22
Day Two
08:30 – 10:30 AM
PANEL II
ARMENIAN FOREIGN POLICY IN HISTORICAL CONTEXT

Can one speak of recurring foreign policy problems that have
characterized Armenian history ? Are there patterns in the way
Armenians have perceived, developed and practiced foreign policy during
the past two centuries? In what way are these questions relevant to
post-Soviet Armenia? What role has the Diaspora played in the making
of Armenian foreign policy?

1. Dr. Ashot Sargsyan

Senior Researcher in History, Matenadaran; Senior Archivist,
President Ter-Petrossian Archives, Armenia

2. Prof. Kevork Bardakjian

Near Eastern Studies Department, University of Michigan,
Ann Arbor

3. Prof. Ronald Suny

Department of History, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

4. Dr. Razmik Panossian

Director, Policy and Programs, Rights and Democracy,
Montreal

10:30 – 11:00 AM Coffee break
11:00 AM – 12:30 PM
PANEL III
THE WORLD AS SEEN BY THE SOUTH CAUCASUS

How do Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia perceive their region in
relation each other, to their neighbors, and to the larger community
of states? What do they see as their main challenges in their foreign
policy agenda?

1. Ambassador Araz Azimov

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Azerbaijan

2. Ambassador Nika Tabatadze

First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Georgia

3. Ambassador Rouben Shugarian

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Armenia

2:00 – 3:30 PM
PANEL IV
THE SOUTH CAUCASUS AS SEEN BY THE REGIONAL POWERS

What are the policies of the three major powers neighboring the South
Caucasus–Russia, Turkey and Iran–toward the South Caucasus? What
is the role of the region in the overall foreign policies of these
three states and how does it affect their relations with other states?

1. Prof. Hossein Seifzadeh

International Relations Department, Tehran University

2. Prof. Ahmet Han

International Relations Department, Bilgi University,
Istanbul

3. Dr. Evgueny Kozhokin

Director, Russian Institute for Strategic Studies, Moscow

4:00 – 5:30 PM
PANEL V
THE SOUTH CAUCASUS AS SEEN BY THE WEST

What are the policies of Europe and the US toward the South Caucasus?
What is the role of the region in the overall foreign policies of
the West and how does it affect their relations with other states?

1. Dr. Svante Cornell

Uppsala University, Sweden, and SAIS, Johns Hopkins
University, DC

2. To be announced

3. Mr. John Fox

Director of Caucasus and Central Asia Affairs, US Department
of State

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 23
Day Three
8:30 – 10:00 AM
PANEL VI

THE IMPACT OF THE SOUTH CAUCASUS ON THE STUDY OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

Do developments in the South Caucasus since independence–including
problems of economic and political transformation, conflicts, and
energy transportation issues–compel us to revise our understanding
of international relations or are accepted models of relations between
states adequate?

1. Prof. Charles King

Political Science Department, Georgetown University,
Washington DC

2. Prof. Stephen Jones

Department of Political Science, Mount Holyoke College

3. Mr. Asbed Kotchikian

Department of Political Science, Boston University

10:30 AM – 12:30 PM
PANEL VII
THE WORLD OF CONFLICTS

How do we explain the high concentration of conflicts in the South
Caucasus? What are the similarities and differences between them? Which,
if any, of the conflict resolution approaches apply to the region? Is
international mediation the proper means to resolve these conflicts?

1. Dr. Ghia Nodia

Director, Center for Democracy and Peace, Tbilisi

2. Prof. Bruno Coppieters

Political Science Department, Free University of Brussels

3. Mr. Arman Grigorian

International Relations, Columbia University/Wesleyan
University

4. Mr. Tom de Waal

Author; Institute for War and Peace Studies, London

2:00 – 6:00 PM
PANEL VIII
NAGORNO KARABAKH: A CASE STUDY IN CONFLICT RESOLUTION IN THE 1990s – A
Round Table discussion

How did the international community perceive the conflicts in the
region, especially the problem of Nagorno Karabakh? What was right
and what went wrong with the OSCE Minsk Group process charged with
the resolution of that conflict? What lessons can be learned from it?

How does the leadership of Nagorno Karabakh perceive the problem and
the solution?

1. Ambassador Vladimir Kazimirov

Former Karabakh negotiator for Russia, Moscow (retired)

2. Ambassador Ömer Ersun

Former Karabakh negotiator for Turkey, Istanbul (Retired)

3. Ambassador Joseph Presel

Former Karabakh negotiator for the US, Washington DC
(retired)

4. Dr. Mahmood Vaezi

Deputy Director, Center for Strategic Research, Tehran
Former Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Iran

5. Ambassador Tofik Zulfugarov

Former Minister of Foreign Affairs and Karabakh negotiator,
Azerbaijan

6. Ambassador David Shahnazaryan

Former Minister of National Security and Karabakh
negotiator, Armenia

SPECIAL PRESENTATION

7. Ashot Ghoulian

Minister of Foreign Affairs of Nagorno Karabakh, Stepanakert

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 24
Day Four

9:00 – 11:00 AM
PANEL IX
RECONCILING THE PAST AND THE FUTURE

How can we assess the path traveled by the South Caucasus republics?
What are the main similarities and differences in their foreign
policies? Is there need and/or room for a common foreign policy? What
should be the main focus at this time?

1. Dr. Leila Alieva

President, Center for National and International Studies,
Baku

2. Dr. Archil Gegeshidze

Senior Research Fellow at the Georgian Foundation for
Strategic and International Studies, Tbilisi; former
advisor to President Edvard Shevardnadze

3. Prof. Edward Walker

Political Science Department, University of California,
Berkeley