Category: 2023

Turkey – June 8 2023

Azerbaijan – June 8 2023

The Baroness herself does not promise anything to Karabakh Armenians anymore, not to put in a good word for them in the British Parliament, nor any other help. This proves that she cannot and could not exert any effective influence on anyone.

“It is my hope and prayer that the long-suffering Armenian nation will continue to strive for the opportunity to live in peace and dignity in your own land. This is the blessing that my family and I, along with all Britons, enjoy. For that great privilege I am deeply indebted to those in my nation who, over eighty years ago, chose to endure a great sacrifice, rather than accepting a false promise of peace.”

This is an excerpt from a letter to the Armenians of Karabakh calling for a sacred sacrifice with a reference to Britain’s choice in the face of Nazi aggression. Its author is the notorious Baroness Caroline Cox, who lives thousands of miles away from Karabakh in her house with an English lawn. Disclaimer: We do not associate either the author’s rhetoric or her position with the policies of the United Kingdom, which has not been known to pander to the aggressive Armenian project.

In her message Cox states that the international community has forgotten about them (Armenians of Karabakh—Ed.) and is forcing Armenia to sign peace, although then Baku will organize their “genocide”. The good old Cox scares the Karabakh Armenians and encourages them to fight. A good part of her letter is devoted to the chilling memories of the atrocities allegedly committed against them by Azerbaijanis. Such pronouncements are intended to arouse the spirit of vengeance in the minds of the ethnic Armenian population of the Karabakh region and raise them to fight.

But whatever hints the Baroness used, knowing her love of jingling coins, one could well take this message as a desperate plea to secure a comfortable life for her in her old age. This is, of course, understandable for an elderly woman. Life in London has always been expensive, even more so now, with the energy crisis and the ensuing price hikes. The “miatsum” project has collapsed, the world centers of power have accepted the new reality and seem to have become immune to all kinds of pro-Armenian lobbying initiatives. In the past, the Armenians and their “miatsum” were a godsend to her. While Baroness was munching khorovats, photographing Albanian churches and writing reports on all this, not only was Azerbaijan developing its economy and strengthening its army, it was also building strong relations with the world centers of power. The ones that are now pressuring Armenia to sign a peace treaty with Azerbaijan as soon as possible.

The Baroness acknowledges this, by the way. However, interestingly enough, the letter is addressed not to the world powers and not to Armenians in general, but exclusively to “the people of Artsakh”. In other words, Cox went from lobbying efforts to open blackmail, but without any sanctions. Cox’s message is approximately as follows: I slaved for you for thirty-five years, I gave you the best years of my life, I received money, I got used to delicious food and warm bed, and now, in my old age, you make me turn the knob of my heater? And do you have any idea how much it costs to mow an English lawn? This is not your wild Karabakh grass you put in your flatbreads. Are you suggesting I should live on the wages of a peeress? No, this will not do. You must pay. With blood!

The Baroness herself does not promise anything to Karabakh Armenians anymore, not to put in a good word for them in the British Parliament, nor any other help. This proves that she cannot and could not exert any effective influence on anyone. For years all her fuss with trips (and she visited Karabakh illegally 88 times), sympathetic words and promises simulated help, which was greatly promoted by the world elites pandering to the Armenian aggression. Now that support is gone and it has become impossible to simulate the process. The question, however, is whether Cox is relying on other outside forces. She does not seem to be. Especially since the Baroness’s message, as already noted, is addressed only to the Armenians of Karabakh. She removed even Armenia itself from her audience, apparently convinced of the fatal reluctance of the Armenians of Yerevan to live in enmity with their neighbors. The letter even contains some details of “atrocities.” That is an incitement: you must not forget the “cruelty of the Turks”. If you have forgotten, I will remind you. That is the essence of the message. Something akin to metered injections of a drug. One gets the impression that the Baroness is trying to excite the already pretty bruised center of pleasure in the brains of the Armenians of Karabakh. Yes, Azerbaijani Dr. Iron Fist administered a harsh but effective treatment by removing most of that organ from the patient’s brain. The patient has been in a state of apathy ever since. And then Cox comes to the rescue, slipping them an intoxicating picture of long suffering in the hope of a relapse, forgetting that not only was the surgery effective, but the patient is under the watchful eye of the aforementioned Azerbaijani professional, who seems ready to perform a second operation, or rather, a special operation to destroy the remnants of the Armenian gangs in Karabakh.

Thus, we can say for certain that Baroness Cox’s letter is nothing more than a gesture of despair, a kind of epitaph for “miatsum”, to be inscribed on its tombstone. If we were Armenians, we would read the letter carefully to see in it all the tragedy of the Armenian people. It is not in the description of imaginary atrocities of Turks, but in the way you are manipulated through images of mythical monsters, forced to play the role of firewood, essentially, being prepared to become outcasts in the Caucasus. Take in the Baroness’s lines: you are being told what you want to hear, you are being drugged. Note that it is not you who are trying to convince a foreigner of the atrocities of Turks, but on the contrary, the foreigner is convincing you. Isn’t this a blatant example of the external indoctrination of your mind that has been going on the decades? Now that peace is so close, the foreign bird is once again trying to feed the vile seeds of Turkophobia to the still unfledged Armenian generation with its crooked black beak.

But the good news is that Cox has alerted the world in a way that even the West is pressuring Armenia to make peace with Karabakh being recognized as part of Azerbaijan. She does mention this: “I am deeply disturbed by reports that the Republic of Armenia is being pressured by international powers to contemplate sacrificing your homeland of Karabakh to the Republic of Azerbaijan in return for a so-called peace treaty. If reports are to be believed, those involved in the negotiation process say that the treaty will secure the borders of the Republic of Armenia and allow trade to open up with the Turkish world.”

In other words, it is great that the international community has realized a simple truth better than the Armenians themselves: as long as Armenia does not recognize the borders of Azerbaijan, its own borders are a very arbitrary concept. The leaders in Washington, Moscow, Brussels, Berlin and Paris are in fact just as concerned about the fate of the Armenian people as the Baroness. This is why they strongly recommend Yerevan to forget about the “miatsum” and to think about the fate of its own 29,800 square kilometers, cut out of the historical Azerbaijani lands. Which, by the way, is also a well-known fact.

Murad Abiyev

Translated from Caliber.Az

https://aze.media/cox-on-blood-on-the-baronesss-message-to-the-armenians-of-karabakh/

June 8 2023

CV NEWS FEED // On Friday, a mob of Antifa and LGBTQ activists fought with a group of Armenian-American parents outside a school board meeting in Glendale, California. 

According to the city’s police department, three arrests were made following the event. Glendale is a large suburb of Los Angeles.

Journalist and anti-extremism advocate Andy Ngo tweeted a video of the scuffle. “Immigrant families have been furious that elementary schools are doing pride events,” he wrote. “Antifa have gathered to oppose the parents.”

As The Daily Signal reported:

Following the Glendale school board’s decision to incorporate LGBTQ+ “Pride” festivals and celebrations into June school days, dozens of parents pulled students from classrooms—with some elementary schools seeing only 40% of students show up for class on June 2.

Additional documents revealed that Glendale staff have attempted to incorporate LGBTQ+ materials and ideology into other curriculum. One assistant principal even told staff to teach children that every person is, by default, “queer” and “socialist.”

Parents from the traditionally conservative Armenian and Hispanic communities in Glendale planned to protest the board’s decisions at an upcoming school board meeting. Antifa Southern California called for activists to counter protest against these parents, whom they labeled “hate groups.”

One of the concerned parents who petitioned the school board said that one of his daughters was “afraid to change in the locker room because she knows (a) guy could come into the room.” When the father reached out to the principal, he informed him “there were no cross-gender bathroom policies.”

Armenians are a historically persecuted minority group from Western Asia who are predominantly Orthodox Christians. Approximately one million Armenians were killed in a genocide during World War I.

The city of Glendale is well-known for its vibrant Armenian-American community. Many local Armenians came in the 1970s to escape communism. The area currently has the largest Armenian population outside of Armenia.

Notably, one of the teachers at the Glendale School District was recently caught on camera downplaying the Armenian Genocide. This teacher also works at a Los Angeles children’s hospital with “queer and trans youth.”

She spoke at the school board meeting, saying: “I deal with a lot of the trauma of LGBT youth related to the hetero-normative, Judeo-Christian, patriarchal, imperialist, capitalist system that oppresses them.”

“Armenians talk about the genocide,” she added, “but they don’t want to talk about the indigenous genocide in 1850, and the lack of reparations for indigenous and black people in this country.”

Significant amounts of footage of the “all-out brawl” circulated on the internet in the hours following the incident. One of the leftist rioters, a man in a pink bandana, was seen assaulting the parent protestors before police arrested him. 

The riot was led in part by local far-left politician Maebe A. Girl, D-CA, a male drag queen who identifies both as “transgender” and “nonbinary” – preferring “she/they pronouns.” He serves on the Neighborhood Council of Silver Lake, an up-and-coming Los Angeles neighborhood that has been described as “trendy and hip.” Girl ran for Congress in 2020 and 2022, losing both times in landslides to incumbent Adam Schiff. Girl is currently running again in the crowded 2024 race to replace Schiff, who is running for the U.S. Senate.

Girl was present at the event and live-tweeted it, incorrectly using the term “Proud Boys” to refer to the group of fathers who opposed his mob.

A previous quarrel between Antifa and mostly Armenian-American parents took place outside of an elementary school on Friday, June 2. 

The attacked parents, many of them reportedly immigrants, were waving American flags and wearing shirts bearing the words “Leave Our Kids Alone.” Several of the aggressors were draped in “pride” flags.

https://catholicvote.org/la-leftists-attack-armenian-americans-for-resisting-pride/

June 8 2023

Inside, the school board heard from the usual suspects who waxed hysterical about gay rights being somehow in danger if an entire month isn’t dedicated to them in public schools instead of having Math Month or Spelling Month where the children work on their educational goals. Many talked about deserving a “safe” place for “queer kids,” as if your average public school is a veritable gauntlet of hate crimes against queer-identifying kids. This is demonstrably false as the New York Times just reported that “acceptance” of queer kids is at an all-time high yet their mental health is steadily declining. Acceptance is not the issue.

What is the issue is that religious children are being indoctrinated into a cult to which their parents have not consented. Parents don’t want this. And yet the boards and the schools persist.

The Glendale school board voted to approve the Pride Month celebrations unanimously despite hundreds of parents coming there to tell them not to. The speakers pretended to be shocked by the violence outside, seemingly oblivious that they had silenced the voices of the parents who don’t want this material in schools. It’s bizarre that people who claim to want discourse yet keep out the voices of the opposition then get shocked and horrified when fists start flying.

In Montgomery County, Md., the Muslim community showed up in force to protest the opt-out policy adopted by the school district. Every student is now required to learn the LGBTQ propaganda and will not be allowed to opt-out.

Asra Nomani wrote on Twitter, “Montgomery County Public Schools recently refused to allow parents to opt out of indoctrination that relates to issues of sexuality and gender. As a Muslim feminist, I don’t agree with many of the conservative interpretations of my Muslim community, but I do believe and they believe in the integral right of parents to parent. During the Obama administration, Muslim groups aligned with far-left interest groups that actually contradicted the socially conservative beliefs of many Muslims. This was not going to sustain itself, I knew. I chronicle this unholy alliance in my book, WOKE ARMY. Sure enough, the hard left came after the one interest that no mama bear or papa bear is going to surrender: our kids.”

Parents of faith need to band together now and force school districts to stop indoctrinating our kids with false doctrines and cult beliefs. Gender and queer theory is based on nothing but faith and should be classified as a religion. In fact, at the Montgomery County protest, a small group of pro-LGBTQ counter-protesters from the Unitarian church stood with a sign and a member of their clergy. It appears that their beliefs are supported by religion; why should that be taught in public schools if Catholicism, Islam, or any other religion is not?

The counter-protesters in Montgomery County were a sad group of white wine moms with weight problems and rainbow-colored, badly cared-for hair. Some of them carried in boom boxes to drown out the parents with Lady Gaga. One of them would only speak to Nomani through a bullhorn. None of these people are serious about having conversations.

Inside the meeting in Maryland, a Muslim father made a very good point that Muslims identify with their religion, and if students are going to be affirmed as the identity of their choice then they must be affirmed if they choose to identify as Muslim. The board ignored the pro-opt-out parents and voted to end the ability for parents to keep their kids from reading pornographic books about gay sex. “Please stop making this about hate. This is about parents having a choice in their children’s education,” he said. “We identify with our religion. You have to be fair and equal when accepting different identities.”

He has a point. I identify as Catholic. So do my children. It is against their religious beliefs to be indoctrinated into the queer cult. There is little chance these school policies can survive lawsuits on first amendment rights when they come. And they already have. Three families in the Montgomery County area have filed a lawsuit challenging the opt-out ban. PJ Media will follow the legal action as it continues.

Ukraine – June 8 2023

https://www.ukrinform.net/rubric-economy/3719817-kazakhstan-armenia-hong-kong-blocking-payments-from-russia-over-parallel-imports-of-electronics-media.html

TIAN SHAN NET

June 8 2023

Armenia, a small country located in the South Caucasus region, has seen a significant evolution in its internet connectivity over the past few decades. From its early days of dial-up connections to the current widespread availability of high-speed internet, Armenia has come a long way in terms of its internet infrastructure.

The first internet connection in Armenia was established in 1993, just two years after the country gained independence from the Soviet Union. At that time, internet connectivity was limited to a few universities and research institutions. The connection was slow and unreliable, with dial-up connections being the only option available.

However, with the passage of time, the internet infrastructure in Armenia began to improve. In the early 2000s, the government of Armenia started investing in the development of the country’s internet infrastructure. The government’s efforts paid off, and by the mid-2000s, Armenia had a reliable and fast internet connection.

One of the major milestones in the evolution of internet connectivity in Armenia was the introduction of broadband internet in the country. In 2004, the first broadband internet connection was established in Armenia, which provided users with faster and more reliable internet access. This development was a game-changer for the country, as it allowed more people to access the internet and use it for various purposes.

Over the years, the availability of high-speed internet in Armenia has continued to improve. Today, most households in the country have access to broadband internet, and the internet penetration rate in Armenia is around 50%. This means that half of the country’s population has access to the internet, which is a significant achievement considering the country’s size and population.

The availability of high-speed internet in Armenia has had a significant impact on the country’s economy and society. It has opened up new opportunities for businesses and entrepreneurs, allowing them to reach a wider audience and expand their operations. It has also made it easier for people to access information and stay connected with friends and family, both within the country and abroad.

In recent years, the government of Armenia has taken steps to further improve the country’s internet infrastructure. In 2019, the government launched a program to provide high-speed internet to all households in the country. The program aims to ensure that every household in Armenia has access to reliable and fast internet, regardless of their location or income level.

Despite the progress made in the evolution of internet connectivity in Armenia, there are still some challenges that need to be addressed. One of the main challenges is the high cost of internet services in the country. The cost of internet services in Armenia is relatively high compared to other countries in the region, which makes it difficult for some people to afford.

Another challenge is the lack of internet access in some rural areas of the country. While the government’s program to provide high-speed internet to all households is a step in the right direction, there are still some areas that are not covered by the program. This means that some people in rural areas still do not have access to reliable and fast internet.

In conclusion, the evolution of internet connectivity in Armenia has been a remarkable journey. From its early days of dial-up connections to the current widespread availability of high-speed internet, Armenia has come a long way in terms of its internet infrastructure. While there are still some challenges that need to be addressed, the progress made so far is a testament to the government’s commitment to improving the country’s internet infrastructure. With continued investment and development, Armenia’s internet connectivity is poised to become even better in the years to come.

https://aboutxinjiang.com/internet-in-armenia/

UK – June 8 2023

Statements recognising Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity signal painful decisions may lie ahead.

FREELANCE JOURNALIST BASED IN YEREVAN

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s statement on the readiness to recognise the region of Nagorny Karabakh as part of Azerbaijan could end a territorial dispute that has locked the two nations in a three decades long war. 

But it has also shaken Armenian society, whose fight for the region has defined its history and identity.

“The perception of the international community is increasingly leaning towards the formula that Armenia and Azerbaijan must, without reservation, recognise each other’s territorial integrity, 29,800 sq km and 86,600 sq km respectively. We agree with this logic and [we] are negotiating according to this logic,” Pashinyan stated during a four-and-half-hour press conference on May 22. He added that “a dialogue must take place between Baku and Stepanakert aimed at ensuring the rights and security of the Armenians of Nagorny Karabakh”.

Prompted by journalists, he added that “those 86,600 square kilometres also include Nagorny Karabakh”.

This is the first time an Armenian leader has said that Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity includes the Armenian-populated enclave in the neighbouring South Caucasus nation.

“Artsakh [as Armenians call Karabakh] is the homeland that we are holding on to with our teeth,” Marat Hovhannisyan told IWPR. Originally from Armenia’s Kotyak region, the 27-year-old joined the army in Karabakh when he was 18: for him, the territory is the land of his ancestors.

“I cannot imagine it as part of Azerbaijan, every Armenian who sets foot here can feel how strong and how long we have fought to have our home and our statehood.” 

The mountainous region has been an integral part of Armenia’s political identity since 1988 when ethnic Armenians, comprising a majority in the territory, demanded it be transferred from then Soviet Azerbaijan to Soviet Armenia.

Armenian forces won the war that broke out following the collapse of the Soviet Union, claiming nearly 30,000 lives and leaving hundreds of thousands displaced. The 1994 ceasefire gave Karabakh de facto independence, but its 150,000 residents have been living in limbo as the territory’s sovereignty was not internationally recognised. 

The link between Yerevan and Stepanakert, Karabakh’s de facto capital, is deep: it is included in Armenia’s declaration of independence and recognising it as part of Azerbaijan would require this to be amended. 

However, while the prime minister’s statement has undoubtedly stirred ire, this has not gone beyond angry debate on social networks, small gatherings and outrage in Stepanakert.

This marks a stark contrast with the recent past.

In 2020, tens of thousands marched in Yerevan calling for Pashinyan’s resignation after Armenia lost the Second Karabakh war and Azerbaijan regained the control of districts around Karabakh and some key towns in the territory, like Hadrut and Shushi (Shusha in Azerbaijani).

Large protests also erupted in May 2022 after Pashinyan said in parliament that Armenia had to “lower the benchmark of expectations” on the status of Karabakh. Then, as now,  the opposition was not able to capitalise on the anger and the interest eventually faded.

“The prospects of subordinating Karabakh to Azerbaijan are sensitive, any idea of ceding the territory is profoundly unpopular in Armenia,” political analyst Alexander Iskandaryan, who leads the Caucasus Institute, told IWPR. “However, due to harsh post-war consequences, it is getting more admissible.”

SELF-DETERMINATION

For decades, Yerevan countered Baku’s claim of territorial integrity with the right to self-determination, stressing that Armenians in the territory had the right to determine their international political status and sovereignty without outside or external interference.

The 2020 war changed the balance of power and narratives. 

The right of Karabakh to self-determination has disappeared from the rhetoric of the political elite, which is increasingly raising the need to accept a difficult reality.

Those in Karabakh do not see such painful decisions as an option.

“We have sacrificed our dearest people for Artsakh and what our heroes did in 1990 cannot be devalued…This is unacceptable,” Loretta Bakhshiyan, whose 18-year-old son Aram and her two brothers died in 2020, told IWPR in a phone conversation from Stepanakert.

Bakhshiyan has been unable to visit her son’s grave in the Yerablur military cemetery in Yerevan since December 2022 due to the blockade by Azerbaijani so-called eco-activists of the Lachin corridor, the only road connecting Karabakh with Armenia. 

“Artsakh must always be Armenian; I cannot imagine [it] as part of Azerbaijan. If you [Armenian government] had to recognise it as part of Azerbaijan, why did you sacrifice this generation?”  the 41-year-old said.

For three decades, surveys have mirrored Bakhshiyan’s position: Armenians have only seen Karabakh either as an independent state or a part of Armenia. 

Grieving mothers are the most critical voices. In mid-May, Armenian media reported an attempt to abduct Ashot Pashinyan, the premier’s 23-year-old son who also fought in the Second Karabakh war. The culprits belonged to an NGO advocating for mothers of the fallen soldiers of 2020 who have regularly staged protests against the government.

FROM DISSENT TO SOLUTION

Polls on Pashinya’s latest statement are not available, but a survey conducted by the Washington-based International Republican Institute (IRI) in early 2023 showed that 53 per cent of Armenians think that government policy towards Karabakh “regressed a lot” while 16 per cent thinks that it “somewhat regressed”. 

Issues related to the region, including the blockade in Lachin corridor or the state of the army, dominate what Armenians see as their government’s biggest failure during the previous six months.

“Pashinyan’s rating has fallen sharply from 75 per cent [of his election in 2018] to 14 per cent today. This figure is below the line of legitimacy; making such an extreme decision with such a trust rating is very risky. A huge wave of dissatisfaction will rise,” Gevorg Poghosyan, sociology professor at the National Academy of Science, told IWPR, adding that a referendum should be held.

Surveys, however, do not detail how far society is ready to go to defend Karabakh, including through a new military confrontation.

“Even when iconic Karabakh leaders, such as Vazgen Manukyan and Robert Kocharyan [former Karabakh-born Armenian president] joined the opposition, there was no awakening as in 1988. People get so tired of wars that they may be ready for a ‘disgraceful peace’,” Sergey Markedonov, a Russian political scientist specialising on Caucasus issues, told IWPR.

A treaty may also not secure long-lasting peace in the region.

“The government thinks that by ceding Karabak it will solve all problems in Armenia, from security issues to economic development. But history has proved that Azerbaijan’s aggression and territorial claims are not limited to the territory… Baku did not cease its ambitions towards Armenia after the [2020] war,” Tigran Abrahamyan, an opposition MP from the I Have the Honour Alliance, told IWPR referring to the 2022 attack along a broad swathe of border areas within Armenia.  

Iskandaryan agreed, pointing out that Baku did not feel under any military threat. 

“Yerevan wants to protect itself with a peace treaty, Baku does not have such a need [and] accordingly, it needs something else, the full control of Karabakh. Even with declaration of Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity, Baku receives Karabakh only on paper,” the analyst stressed.  “There are still Russian peacekeepers stationed there, there are local government institutions, even though not recognised, and Azerbaijani legislation does not extend to it.”

June 8 2023

 Faizan Hashmi  Published | 06:45 PM

June 8 2023