FROM EAST TO WEST
By Metro Ã~Iireann
Thursday, February 26, 2009, 17:55
Armenia’s Ambassador to Ireland, Dr Vahe Gabrielyan, speaks to Metro
Ã~Iireann about his country’s links with Ireland, conflict in the
Nagorno-Karabakh region, and reconciling Armenia’s close Russian ties
with its European aspirations
Dr Vahe Gabrielyan was appointed Ar-menia’s Ambassador to the United
Kingdom in March 2003 and to Ireland in December 2005, becoming the
first ever Ambassador of the Republic of Armenia to this country.
Before his ambassadorial tenure he was press secretary for the
President of Armenia from 1998 to 2003. At the same time he served as
the president’s interpreter, and previously worked at the Ministry
of Foreign Affairs of Armenia in various capacities from 1994 to
1998. He has held positions at the UN, OSCE and later Unesco desks
of the Depar-tment of International Organ-isations of the Ministry,
and he has also worked at the Consti-tutional Court of Armenia.
Dr Gabrielyan took the time to answer our questions on various
topics, from the links between Ireland and Armenia to the conflict
in Nagorno-Karabakh, and his country’s future in Europe.
Metro Ã~Iireann: You are the first ever Ambassador of Armenia to the
UK with an added brief in Ireland. Can you give your impression of
Ireland during your visits?
Dr Vahe Gabrielyan: I had special feelings for Ireland, the Irish p
eople and their history even before I was considered for the job and
felt really privileged and proud to be appointed Armenia’s Ambassador
to Ireland, moreover the first ever one.
All my visits to Dublin have been enjoyable, whether on my own or
accompanied with my family. Of course, the most memorable day was
the one when I presented my credentials. All the officials from the
Foreign Ministry and the President’s office were very welcoming and
helpful but I was most impressed when I met President Mary McAleese.
The ceremony was very solemn and inspiring and the inspecting of
the guard was an obliging experience, however I was touched by the
President’s warm welcome to myself and my family and her knowledge of
Armenia and our history. I was very pleased for her assessment of the
resemblance between our two nations’ histories, fate and character
and her offer of assistance in my mission was indeed encouraging.
These were words every diplomat wants to hear. I just hope we will
see her visit Armenia before long and share this mood with the
Armenian people.
ME: What is the exact nature of Armenian-Irish relations? On what
cultural, political and trade matters do we co-operate?
VG: We should realise that Armenian-Irish relations on a
government-to-government level are in their very young days. We have
had contacts earlier, of course, but on an official level we are in
the initial stages, although I20must mention with satisfaction that
we have already had high-level contact.
Not long after my appointment, the then Foreign Minister Mr Dermot
Ahern TD invited our Foreign Minister of that time, Mr Vartan Oskanian,
to visit Dublin in the beginning of 2007. This was the first ever
visit of an Armenian Foreign Minister and we covered a lot of ground,
[including] ways of developing co-operation bet-ween the two nations.
There are indeed many areas where we can closely co-operate. We are
interested in Ireland’s experience of European integration, economic
achievement and conflict resolution, in regulating relations with a
large diaspora, etc.
Apart from the political dimension, which we intend to expand on, we
are very keen on developing comprehensive economic co-operation. From
my very first visits I had meetings at the Chambers of Commerce of
Ireland and we started a process of establishing co-operation between
them and the chamber of commerce in Armenia. The process has stalled
for a while but we plan to rejuvenate it.
Being small countries quite far apart geographically obviously
causes some difficulties, and having no embassies in each other’s
capital cities does not help either, therefore we have nominated
one of our compatriots, a successful Armenian-Irish businessman,
to be our honorary consul who, being a Dubliner for decades, can
pursue trade issues on a much more regular basis. We have received
the consent of the Irish authorities and hopefully, pending some
legislative amendments to our respective procedures in Armenia,
will appoint him before long.
We are also in the process of finalising an agreement on avoiding
double taxation which will be a good start, encouraging the business
communities on both sides to more seriously look into doing business
with each other.
ME: In what areas do you see prospects for economic relations between
our two countries?
VG: Apart from the traditional branches of economy such as mining,
heavy industry, chemical industry, textiles and agriculture, Armenians
have always been good, like the Irish, in spheres of economy requiring
high-standard education, advanced skills and brainpower, spheres
such as information technologies, hi-tech software development,
re-search, banking as well as industries for which geographical
barriers and transportation costs are not important – diamond cutting
and refining, jewellery making, etc. Tourism is one of those with the
highest potential, as are organic food production, food processing
and intellectual services.
I would like to go back to the previous question for a moment and add
that cultural relations of course are not at the bottom of our list. It
is not by chance that the first thing we did in Ireland was organise an
exhibition of photographs in the Central Library in Dublin, depicting
the beautiful scenery, history, architectural and cultural monuments
and everyda y life of Armenia as seen by 15 professional photographers.
And while we are on the subject of culture, I would like to mention
with pride the Armenian collection at the Chester Beatty Library
in Dublin. This is said to be the largest collection of medieval
illustrated Armenian manuscripts not in Armenian hands. We Armenians
– who invented our alphabet in 406 and put it into uninterrupted use
since – have a special reverence for the written word, the books and
the spiritual in general and boast a unique collection of over 17,000
medieval manuscripts in the Matenadaran, the depositary of ancient
manuscripts in Yerevan. The second, hugely important collection is
maintained and researched at the Mekhitarist Abbey in Venice, while
another unique collection is kept in the Armenian Quarter in Jerusalem.
The one in the Chester Beatty is unique in being not in Armenian
hands. I would like to take this opportunity to sincerely thank the
director of the library, the curator of the exhibition and all Chester
Beatty staff for the wonderful work they are doing by preserving this
important cultural heritage.
ME: How many Armenians are in Ireland, and in general, what types of
experiences – good and bad – do they report to the embassy as regards
life here?
VG: As for probably any community, speaking of precise numbers
is not realistic; exact statistics simply do not exist. However,
we know that there are not many Armenians in Ireland by any count,
and those who are known do not live concentrated in one place.
The Armenian community in Ireland has not been, until very recently,
formally organised around any structures. They have recently started
talking about establishing some sort of a community centre, possibly
also a Sunday school and having organised Sunday Mass. The embassy
undoubtedly encourages such activity and we hope to see a coherent
community that can contribute to Armenian-Irish bilateral relations.
>From whatever contacts we have had, we have no reports of any bad
experience. On the contrary – and I want to specially mention this –
in 1988, in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake in Armenia,
the Irish people showed their warmth and generosity and were of great
assistance both morally and materially. That attitude means a lot to
us and will not be forgotten.
ME: Can you explain the current status of the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict, and whether those involved in the Northern Ireland peace
process have offered any advice to the government of Armenia in
solving this?
VG: The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is one of the most intricate
conflicts of our time because of several factors: it has a long
history; has claimed a terrible number of lives; and is in a very
complex region where many powers have interests.
Let me explain its roots as briefly as possible. After the Bolshevik
revolution in Russia, countries of the south Caucasus, Armenia and
Georgia – formerly part of the Russian Empire – became independent
in 1918 and a new country, Azerbaijan, was also formed. The latter
had claims for Karabakh, part of the ancient Armenian province of
Artsakh, but these claims were considered so unfounded by the League
of Nations that it did not grant Azerbaijan membership.
When the three countries where sovietised by the Red Army in 1920,
the authorities of Soviet Azerbaijan formally acknowledged that
Karabakh was part of Armenia. However, a year later the Communist
authorities in Moscow decided to re-draw the borders in the Caucasus
at their own whim and thus cut two big chunks of indigenous Armenian
lands, Nakhichevan and Karabakh, and ‘presented’ them to Azerbaijan,
albeit with some degree of formal autonomy.
Armenians never reconciled with this fact and kept protesting, but not
much was possible under either the Leninist ‘internationalist’ dogma or
Stalinist repression. Consequently, under continuing oppression from
Azeri authorities, all the Armenian population of Nakhichevan were
ousted, and some demographic change was forced in Nagorno-Karabakh
through various means of discrimination and violation of human rights.
When Gorbachev’s ‘perestroika’ offered hopes for democracy and justice,
Armenians in Karabakh raised their voice through legislative procedures
and demanded a restoration of justice.20Repressions and organised
pogroms of Armenians followed, and when the Soviet Union collapsed,
these attacks grew into full-scale outright military aggression
against the civilian population.
A bigger part of Karabakh came under Azeri occupation, the population
was killed or fled, towns and villages were destroyed, while the rest –
the still unoccupied parts – were bombed and shelled around the clock.
Karabakh was able to organise self-defence and ultimately beat
the Azeris against the odds, liberating most of the territory and
establishing control over some adjacent lands. Almost all Karabakhi
men went to fight to protect their families and homes.
A formal ceasefire was established in 1994 and still holds, although
shootings are still frequent. A negotiating format, co-chaired by
the US, Russia and France and including about another 10 countries
was put together by the OSCE in the early 1990s and has since been
working on finding a resolution acceptable to all parties. Several
proposals have been put on the table since then and rejected by one or
more of the three parties (Azerbaijan, Nagorno Karabakh and Armenia),
the last three of them by Azerbaijan.
Meanwhile, Karabakh has managed to hold a referendum, declare
independence, conduct three presidential, parliamentary and local
elections, and is successfully building a democratic independent state,
working hard to improve the welfare of its people and eliminate the
consequences of the war imposed on them.
One major impediment to the peace process is that Azerbaijan refuses
to directly talk to the Nagorno-Karabakh authorities, which is counter
to logic, because the conflict is in the first place between Azerbaijan
and Karabakh.
Most recently, on 2 November 2008, a declaration on the prospects of
a political settlement for the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict was signed
by the presidents of Armenia, Azerbaijan and the Russian Federation,
committing the parties to the non-use of force and resolution of the
conflict by peaceful means only. We think that the signing of such
a declaration is quite an important development.
Being involved in such an intricate conflict and lengthy negotiations,
we are of course interested in other nations’ experience in conflict
resolution and carefully study all available sources. We are impressed
with the progress in the Northern Ireland talks and genuinely happy
that this long-standing conflict is finally coming to an end.
ME: Like Ireland, Armenia has a massive diaspora. What does the
government of Armenia do, through its embassies, to ensure that the
culture and traditions of Armenians are maintained when abroad?
VG: At least two-thirds of Armenians live outside Armenia – or the
Republic of Armenia, for the bigger part of Armenia, or western
Armenia, is now part of Turkey. The reason for the existence of such
a massive diaspora is not the free choice to live where20one wishes.
There has certainly been economic emigration since independence was
restored in 1991. With the demise of the Soviet Union, the economy –
already under big strain because of the 1988 earthquake that destroyed
a third of the country, and because of the hundreds of thousands of
Armenian refugees fleeing pogroms in Azerbaijan – deteriorated to an
unprecedented low.
The blockades imposed by Azerbaijan and Turkey further aggravated
the situation and a considerable number of people left Armenia to
find jobs and security.
The diaspora, however, was not formed by these people. It came into
existence when hundreds of thousands were deported from their homes
in western Armenia, then part of the Ottoman Empire (now Turkey)
at the beginning of the 20th century. In a centrally planned,
government-executed annihilation campaign of Armenians that started
under Sultan Hamid at the end of the 19th century and culminated,
under the Young Turks, in 1915 in the first genocide of the 20th
century, all the population of western Armenia was exterminated. At
least 1.5 million perished in the slaughter or died of hunger and
exhaustion in the deportation through the deserts, while the rest
fled for other countries.
When one speaks of the Armenian diaspora – a generic name for the
now confident, prospering, respected, and increasingly influential
communities all over the globe – the history of how it came about
should20always be borne in mind because this historic memory is a
defining feature of their psychology and activities.
Today, apart from maintaining their identity and their well-being,
the Armenian diaspora pursues two major issues: the international
recognition and condemnation of the 1915 genocide of Armenians –
which Turkey still refuses – and the strengthening of the Republic
of Armenia.
We co-operate with the diaspora in all possible directions, including
the strengthening and deepening of our bilateral relations with the
countries where we have communities. Armenians are always loyal,
law-abiding and hard-working citizens of the countries where
they reside and act as a useful bridge for furthering bilateral
relations. The Armenian diaspora is an important part of the nation and
a valuable asset, and we do our best to help the people and enhance
their ties with their homeland. In this light, we are very keen to
learn from the Irish experience of developing the relations between
the homeland and the diaspora.
As for embassies, working with the communities is an important part of
our job. We work very closely with both structures and individuals of
respective communities on a multitude of issues – political, trade,
cultural, educational, tourism, investments, etc. We have already
achieved a lot and intend to constantly build on that.
ME: There is confusion among onlookers as to whether Armenia wishes
to eventually join the EU. Some say that popular opinion backs such a
move, but that the government’s foreign policy favours the continuation
of close ties with Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States
(CIS). What is the reality of the situation from your perspective?
VG:â~@~HLet me start with the CIS and Russia. As one would appreciate,
Armenia – at least eastern Armenia – was for a long time part of the
Russian Empire and, for over 70 years, of the Soviet Union. Throughout
these years, we have built not only deep economic ties but also
cultural, educational, historic people-to-people relations with
others with whom we were part of the same country. We should maintain
these ties of friendship and co-operation and build on them for our
own benefit.
A lot of Armenians live in the CIS countries and our community in
Russia is the largest among all our communities in the diaspora. In
addition, many families in Armenia have someone working in these
countries on a seasonal basis as well.
Russia is also a strategic partner and a very significant economic
partner and investor in our economy. All these ties are in our own
interest.
Having said this, I must make it clear that integration into the
European community, structures and economy is a government priority
policy that we have announced since the early years of independence,
as well an express wish of the public.
As the first country in the world to adopt Christianity as a state
religion in 301, we believe that we are bearers of European values
and Europe is where we belong.
The policies of European integration that we have pursued consistently
are by no means contradictory to our maintaining of good relations
with Russia or the CIS countries. The two can successfully complement
each other and there is no disagreement – well at least on this issue –
between public opinion and the Government’s foreign policy.
We do see ourselves in Europe but understand well that we still have
much work to do to achieve the way of life that we aspire.
We also believe that once our aims and declared direction of
development are clear, they will be reached not by making loud
statements and claims, but through consistency of action, hard work
and determination.
We hope that Ireland will stand by a friendly nation once or when
the need to assist on this road arises.
Agallamh le hAmbasadóir na hAirméine chun na hÃ~Iireann
Ceapadh Vahe Gabri-elyan mar Ambasadóir na hAirméine chun na
RÃochta Aontaithe i mà an Mhárta 2003 agus mar Ambasadóir na
hAirméine chun na hÃ~Iireann i mà na Nollag 2005, agus é ina
chéad Ambasadóir riamh de Poblacht na hAirméine in Ã~Iirinn. Sula
raibh sé ina Ambasadóir bhà sé ina Phreasrúnaà d’Uachtarán
na hAirméine don tréimhse idir 1998 ag us 2003. Ag an am céanna,
d’oibrigh sé mar ateangaire don Uachtarán agus d’oibrigh sé i
Roinn Gnóthaà Eachtracha na hAirméine i róil éagsúla ón mbliain
1994 go dtà 1998. Bhà post aige sna Náisiúin Aontaithe (UN), in
EagraÃocht na Náisiún Aontaithe um Shlándáil agus Chomhoibriú
san Eoraip (OSCE) agus, ina dhiaidh sin san EagraÃocht Oideachais,
EolaÃochta agus Chultúir na Náisiún Aontaithe (UNESCO) i Rannóg
na nEagraÃochtaà Idirnáisiúnta sa Roinn sin. D’oibrigh sé chomh
maith i gCúirt Bhunreacht na hAirméine.
Is tusa céad Ambasadóir na hAirméine riamh chun na RÃochta
Aontaithe agus chun na hÃ~Iireann. Conas a chuaigh Ã~Iire i bhfeidhm
ort le linn do chuairte?
Bhà mothúcháin speisialta agam d’Ã~Iirinn, do mhuintir na hÃ~Iireann
agus do stair an tÃre fiú sula a smaoinÃodh orm don phost agus
bhà sé de phribhléid agam, agus bhà mé thar a bheith bródúil,
nuair a ceapadh mé mar Ambasadóir na hAirméine chun na hÃ~Iireann,
an chéad Ambasadóir riamh chun na tÃre seo.
Bhain mé taitneamh as gach cuairt a thug mé ar Bhaile Ã~Atha
Cliath, na cinn nuair a bhà mé i m’aonar agus na cinn nuair a
bhà mo chlann liom. Is cinnte, áfach, gurb à an chuimhne is b
uaine atá agam ná an lá a bhain mé na dintiúir amach. Chuir
feidhmeannaigh ón Roinn Gnóthaà Eachtracha agus ó oifig an
Uachtaráin fearadh na fáilte romham agus bhà siad an-chabhrach
go deo liom, ach an rud is mó a chuaigh i bhfeidhm orm ar an lá
ná nuair a bhuail mé leis an Uachtarán Mary McAleese. Searmanas
an-sollúnta agus inspioráideach a bhà ann agus ba thaithà ar leith
a bhà i gcigireacht na ngardaÃ. Chuaigh an fháilte ó chroà a
chuir an tUachtarán romhainn, mé féin agus mo chlann, i bhfeidhm
go mór orainn go léir mar aon leis an méid a bhà ar eolas aici
faoin Airméin agus faoi stair na tÃre. Bhà mé an-sásta leis
na cosúlachtaà ar labhair sà fúthu idir stair, cinniúint agus
carachtar an dá thÃr agus thairg sà tacaÃocht dom le linn mo
mhisean a chomhlÃonadh, rud a chuir ardú meanman ionam. TeastaÃonn
ó chuile thaidhleoir beo na focail sin a chloisteáil. Tá súil
agam go dtabharfaidh sà cuairt ar an Airméin sula i bhfad agus go
scaipfidh sà an dea-spin seo ar mhuintir na hAirméine.
Cén caidreamh go dÃreach atá idir an Airméin agus Ã~Iire maidir
le cúrsaà cultúir, polaitÃochta agus trádála?
Ba chóir dúinn tabhairt faoi deara nach bhfuil ach tús curtha
leis an gcaidreamh idir an Airméin agus Ã~Iire ar leibhéal na
rialtas. Bhà teagmháil idir an dá thÃr roimhe seo cinnte ach ar
leibhéal oifigiúil, táimid sa chead chéim den phróiseas, ach
cuireann sé áthas orm mé a lua go raibh teagmháil ardleibhéal ar
siúl eadrainn go dtà seo. Seal beag i ndiaidh dom a bheith ceaptha,
thug Aire Gnóthaà Eachtracha na hÃ~Iireann, an tUasal Dermot
Ahern TD, cuireadh dár nAire Gnóthaà Eachtracha, an tUasal Vartan
Oskanian, teacht go hÃ~Iirinn ag tús 2007. Ba à seo an chéad uair
a thug Aire Gnóthaà Eachtracha na hAirméine cuairt ar Ã~Iirinn agus
pléadh an-chuid rudaÅ ina measc, slite le comhoibriú a fhorbairt
idir an dá thÃr. Is fÃor a rá go bhfuil go leor réimsà inar
féidir linn comhoibriú go dlúth: tá suim againn sa taithà atá
ag Ã~Iirinn maidir le comhtháthú san Eoraip, maidir le héachtaÃ
eacnamaà ochta agus le réiteach coimhlinte, agus maidir le caidreamh
a rialú le Diaspóra mór srl.
Taobh amuigh den réimse polaitÃochta, réimse ina bhfuiltear ag
súil le fás agus forbairt, tá an-spéis againn i gcomhoibriú
eacnamaÃochta cuimsitheach a fhorbairt. Ã" na chéad chuairteanna a
thug mise ar Ã~Iirinn, bhà cruinnithe agam ag Cumann Lucht Tr chtála
na hÃ~Iireann agus chuireamar tús le próiseas chun comhoibriú a
bhunú idir Cumann Lucht Tráchtála na hÃ~Iireann agus Cumann Lucht
Tráchtála na hAirméine. Cuireadh moill ar an bpróiseas ar feadh
tamaill ach tá sé ar intinn againn é a chur faoi lánseol arÃs.
Tá deacrachtaà ag baint le bheith i do thÃr bheag agus a bheith
suite i bhfad óna chéile, agus is dúshlán eile é nach bhfuil
ambasáid againn i bprÃomhchathracha a chéile. AinmnÃodh, mar sin,
duine dár muintir féin, fear gnó idir an Airméin agus Ã~Iire mar
Chonsal Oinigh. Is Baile Ã~Atha Cliathach é le blianta anuas agus
is féidir leis a choinneáil leis an gcúram maidir le cúrsaÃ
trádà ¡la ar bhonn nÃos rialta.
Tá cead faighte againn ó údaráis na hÃ~Iireann agus le cúnamh
Dé, ceapfar é sula i bhfad nuair a chuirfear roinnt leasuithe
reachtaÃochta i bhfeidhm, leasuithe a bhaineann leis na nósanna
imeachta san Airméin.
Faoi láthair, táimid ag cur crÃche le comhaontú maidir le cáin
dhúbailte a sheachaint agus is tús maith é sin mar spreagfaidh sé
na pobail ghnó sa dá thÃr aghaidh a thabhairt ar ghnó a dhéanamh
lena chéile.