The California
Courier Online, June 1, 2023
1- Pashinyan’s
Surrender of Artsakh
To Azerbaijan Is
Null and Void
By Harut
Sassounian
Publisher,
The California
Courier
www.TheCaliforniaCourier.com
www.TheCaliforniaCourier.com
2- Karekin II,
Aram I Reject Statement that Artsakh is Part of Azerbaijan
3- AAF Ships to
Armenia
and Artsakh
$16.7
Million of Cancer Medication
4- Eagle Scout
Honors Armenian-American Veterans Through Service Project
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1- Pashinyan’s
Surrender of Artsakh
To Azerbaijan Is
Null and Void
By Harut
Sassounian
Publisher,
The California
Courier
www.TheCaliforniaCourier.com
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has hinted repeatedly since
the 2020 Artsakh War that Artsakh is a part of Azerbaijan. This has been his
position for years. As a journalist, long before coming to power, he thought
that Artsakh is a burden on Armenia.
Pashinyan told the Armenian Parliament in April 2022 that
the international community urged Armenia to lower the bar on the
status of Artsakh. Earlier this year, a Parliament member of Pashinyan’s party
made the following defeatist statement: we cannot risk three million Armenians
for 120,000 people in Artsakh.
On May 14, 2023, European Council President Charles Michel
announced, after meeting with Pashinyan and Pres. Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan in Brussels,
that the leaders of Armenia
and Azerbaijan “confirmed their
unequivocal commitment to … the respective territorial integrity of Armenia (29,800 square kilometers) and Azerbaijan
(86,600 square kilometers).”
Finally, during his 4.5-hour-long rambling press conference
in Yerevan on May 22, 2023, Pashinyan clearly
confirmed that his recognition of the territory of Azerbaijan
includes Artsakh. This is the same man who stood in front of the people of
Artsakh in Stepanakert, the Capital of Artsakh, on August 5, 2019 and said:
“Artsakh is Armenia,
period!” He also led the crowd in chants of ‘miyatsoum’ or ‘unification.’ To
make matters worse, Pashinyan also conceded that the enclaves (previously
Azeri-inhabited villages located inside Armenia),
are not included in his 29,800 square kilometers of Armenia.
After deciding to give away Artsakh, Pashinyan tried to
explain that his recognition of the territory of Azerbaijan, which includes
Artsakh, is with the understanding that Azerbaijan in return recognizes
Armenia’s territory (29,800 square kilometers) and that the “rights and
security issues of the people of Artsakh must be discussed by Baku and
Stepanakert.”
There are several serious problems with Pashinyan’s
statement:
1) Pashinyan is wrong to recognize Artsakh as a part of the territory of Azerbaijan. Artsakh was not historically
a part of Azerbaijan.
Whereas Artsakh has been a part of Armenia
for thousands of years, Azerbaijan
has been in existence for a little over 100 years. Pashinyan could have
recognized the territory
of Azerbaijan without
acknowledging that it includes Artsakh.
2) While Pashinyan is recognizing the territory
of Azerbaijan, Pres. Aliyev has never
acknowledged Armenia’s
territorial integrity. On the contrary, Aliyev repeatedly claims that all of Armenia is part of historic Western
Azerbaijan!
3) To cover up his misguided recognition of Artsakh as a
part of Azerbaijan,
Pashinyan is misleading the Armenian public by saying that he wants to defend
the ‘rights and security’ of Artsakh Armenians within Azerbaijan. In
reality, Artsakh Armenians will not be able to live a single day under
Azerbaijani rule. An example of how Azerbaijan treats Artsakh Armenians
is the six-month blockade of the Lachin Corridor, depriving the local Armenian
population of food and medicines. Once they fall under Azeri rule, their mistreatment
will get much worse.
4) Pashinyan keeps dangling a carrot in front of Artsakh
Armenians by saying that he is seeking ‘international guarantees’ to safeguard
their well-being under Azeri rule. During his press conference, Pashinyan
claimed that he is relying “not only on the pressures of the international
community, but on constructive negotiations with Azerbaijan, and on Baku-Stepanakert
institutional dialogue.” No international guarantees can safeguard the
well-being of Artsakhtsis under Azerbaijan’s
brutal rule. Aliyev will ignore all external pressures, since he frequently
states: “no matter what the international community says, I will do what I
want.”
5) Pashinyan is throwing Artsakhtsis to the wolf telling
them to make their separate arrangements with Azerbaijan. He is washing his hands
from the Artsakhtsis who are citizens of Armenia! Without any backing from Armenia, how
can tiny Artsakh battle the Goliath Azerbaijan? If Armenia will not defend the rights
of its own citizens in Artsakh, how can Pashinyan expect others to guarantee
their security?
6) Pashinyan is not only violating the interests of Armenia and Artsakh, but also the earlier
decision of Armenia’s
Parliament. Legally, Pashinyan has no right to give away Artsakh to Azerbaijan. He
does not own Artsakh. He also does not have the approval of the Parliament or
the Constitutional Court.
7) While Pashinyan is recklessly risking the lives of
Artsakh Armenians by planning to place them under Azerbaijani rule, he is
ironically acknowledging that Azerbaijan is pursuing a policy of “ethnic
cleansing and genocide” against the people of Artsakh.
8) Despite all the indications that he is playing with fire,
Pashinyan is hell-bent on signing a peace treaty with a brutal enemy who
intends to chop Armenians to pieces, not make peace.
9) Pashinyan’s concessions to Azerbaijan
encouraged Pres. Aliyev, a week later, to make further demands and threaten
both Armenia
and Artsakh.
This is what happens when an inexperienced, incompetent and
defeated person like Pashinyan leads a country and refuses to resign.
Pashinyan should know that whatever meaningless piece of
paper he signs with Azerbaijan,
giving away Artsakh and ‘making peace’ with Azerbaijan, the Armenian people
consider his illegal decisions null and void and categorically reject them. As
soon as a new nationalist government comes to power in Armenia, it
will cancel and reverse on day one all of Pashinyan’s defeatist and anti-Armenian
decisions.
This is not just my opinion. During the past week, several
major Armenian institutions from Armenia, Artsakh and Diaspora
issued statements condemning Pashinyan’s unacceptable surrender of Artsakh. The
list includes, the Catholicos of All Armenians Karekin II, Catholicos of the
Great House of Cilicia Aram
I, Armenian Missionary Association of America, Armenian Revolutionary
Federation, Armenian Democratic Liberal Party, Armenian General Benevolent
Union, all 33 members of Artsakh Parliament’s unanimous resolution, and dozens
of other Armenian organizations!
Armenia’s
population should form a common front against Pashinyan, have 100,000 or more
Armenians gather in front of his office in Yerevan and demand his immediate resignation.
Unless such a joint and massive show of force is organized, Pashinyan will
remain in office until he destroys both Artsakh and Armenia!
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2- Karekin II, Aram I Reject
Statement that Artsakh is Part of Azerbaijan
The Holy Sees of Etchmiadzin and Cilicia issued separate
statements decrying and condemning an announcement by Prime Minister Nikol
Pashinyan who confirmed on Monday, May 22 that he had agreed to recognize
Artsakh as part of Azerbaijan.
Both Catholicosates said that Pashinyan’s statement was “unacceptable”
“By recognizing the Republic
of Artsakh as a part of Azerbaijan, the
Armenian authorities would inevitably leave our brothers and sisters in Artsakh
facing a new genocide and loss of the homeland,” read a statement issued by the
Supreme Spiritual Council of the Holy See of Etchmiadzin after convening an
emergency session on Tuesday, May 23.
“The independence of Artsakh and the territories of Armenia gained
at the cost of the blood of our children are not subject to bargaining,” added
the statement, calling on the Armenian government to “abandon this defeatist
intent.”
“We believe that a decisive _expression_ of the will of our
people on this issue is imperative,” the Etchmiadzin statement said.
In a similar statement issued on Tuesday, May 23, the Holy
See of Cilicia expressed it complete solidarity with a declaration adopted late
Monday by the Artsakh National Assembly, condemning Pashinyan for his posturing
on the matter.
“On December 10, 1991, Artsakh already expressed its
collective will for sovereignty through a referendum, which was followed by a
decision, on July 8, 1992, by the Supreme Council of the Republic of Armenia,
which re-emphasized the sovereignty of Artsakh,” said the Cilician
Catholicosate.
“According to international law, a nation has the right to
self-determination. Therefore, the just right of the people of Artsakh to
determine for themselves cannot fall victim to attempts to establish a
comprehensive peace within the region and to recognize the territorial
integrity of Azerbaijan,”
the Antelias statement said.
“It is imperative to be vigilant, far-sighted and especially
determined. Including Artsakh as part Azerbaijan
will not only endanger the security of the people of Artsakh, but also the
sovereignty and security of Armenia,”
said the Cilician Catholicosate. “At this critical juncture in our history, we
appeal to all Armenians to unite and support Artsakh.”
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3- AAF Ships to Armenia and Artsakh
$16.7
Million of Cancer Medication
The Armenia Artsakh Fund (AAF) announced that it just sent
by airfreight to Armenia and
Artsakh its single most valuable shipment of medicines to Armenia and
Artsakh in its 34 years of existence, valued at $16.7 million.
The shipment arrived in Yerevan on May 4, 2023.
The entire shipment of this valuable medication was donated
generously by Direct Relief, a charitable organization that the AAF and its
predecessor the United Armenian Fund have worked with for more than 30 years.
The shipment consisted of 4,000 units of the highly
expensive cancer-related medication: Armenia received 3,800 units worth
$15,865,000 and Artsakh’s share was 200 units worth $835,000.
The medicine is called Udenyca (Pegfilgrastim) which is a
pre-filled injection designed to decrease the risk of infection during
chemotherapy treatment.
“We highly appreciate the life-saving medicines donated by
Direct Relief for Armenia
and Artsakh and the assistance of the International Committee of the Red Cross
to deliver them to the 120,000 Armenians blockaded in Artsakh,” said Harut
Sassounian, President of Armenia Artsakh Fund.
In the past 34 years, including the shipments under its
predecessor, the United Armenian Fund, the AAF delivered to Armenia and
Artsakh a grand total of $991million worth of humanitarian aid, mostly
medicines, on board 158 airlifts and 2,558 sea containers.
For more information, call the AAF office: (818) 241-8900;
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4- Eagle Scout
Honors Armenian-American Veterans Through Service Project
In honor of all Armenian-Americans who have served in the US military, Andrew Levon Krekorian of BSA Troop
36 in Valley Village has dedicated a veterans tribute
garden at the Ararat Home in Mission Hills, as a service project for the Eagle
Scout rank, Scouting’s highest achievement.
He was inspired by the memory of his late grandfather Rick Krekorian,
who was a World War II combat veteran of the US Marines Corps. He brought his idea to the Ararat Home, who
embraced it and partnered with Andrew in designing and completing the garden.
“Armenian-Americans have courageously served our country in
the military since the Civil War,” said Andrew, 18. “The men and women who gave us the freedoms
we enjoy deserve all of our gratitude, and this project is one step to honor
them appropriately.”
The garden includes a circular seating area of concrete
benches around a shade tree, which will be enjoyed by the elderly residents of
the Ararat Home and their families. A
bronze plaque that Andrew designed reads “Throughout our nation’s history
Armenian-Americans have served nobly and selflessly in the United States
Military. This garden is dedicated to the sacrifices they made and their
undying patriotism and devotion. As you
enjoy this quiet place, take a moment to remember them with gratitude for their
service.”
In addition to the garden, Andrew created a brochure
highlighting some of the history of Armenian-American military service for the
adjacent Ararat-Eskijian
Museum. The brochure includes information about
inspirational role models like Brigadier General Haig Shekerjian, the first
Armenian to graduate from West Point; Anna Der-Vartanian, the first woman ever
to serve as the Navy’s Master Chief Petty Officer; World War II Marine Corps
heroes Victor Maghakian and Harry Kizirian; and Civil War veteran of the Union
Navy Khachadour Paul Garabedian, who is believed to be the first Armenian to
become a US citizen.
“I’m extremely grateful to everyone who helped make this
project a reality, especially the management of Ararat Home and the Ararat-Eskijian Museum,” said Andrew. “None of this would have been possible
without their generous partnership, cooperation and encouragement.”
The Armenian
American Veterans
Garden is located at
Ararat Home of Los Angeles, 15105
Mission Hills Road, Mission Hills,
California.
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