Recently, a few hundred Australians of Armenian, Greek, and Assyrian descent took to the streets of Sydney’s CBD to protest Azerbaijan’s military attacks on sovereign, democratic Armenia.
Last week at the United Nations General Assembly in New York, Armenia’s Prime Minister, Nikol Pashinyan, stressed the need for support from the global community and made clear the high risk of new aggression.
Yet, in Australia, news watchers would have seen little more than a brief mention of conflict – often only as a ribbon of notification – in their news bulletin. In this crisis-saturated world, there is either no room left to care, or our collective consciousness simply cannot process why we should.
The international response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, however, suggests otherwise. President Putin’s actions were met with outrage and concern across three important dimensions. Taken collectively, they ignited both reaction and action from around the globe.
Those dimensions are paralleled in Armenia’s struggle today and are the reason we should care about the attacks on Armenia.
Three ingredients sparked a response.
The first and most immediate concern was of course for the people of Ukraine: loss of life, displacement, fear, hunger, the trauma and toll of war. In Armenia, the Prime Minister has indicated almost 8,000 people have been displaced. Houses, schools, water, and electricity infrastructure have been destroyed. Armenian servicemen were tortured while the rape and mutilation of female military personnel was video-recorded and distributed. The sad reality is, as anyone watching the nightly news can attest, such horrors are not in themselves enough to elicit a global response. In too many instances, they don’t even provoke condemnation.
If loss of life, torture, and displacement alone are not enough to cause the public to care, what else is there? In the case of Ukraine, there was also an acute awareness that a response (or lack thereof) could have consequences for other simmering global tensions – particularly here in our region. Would President Xi seize the moment of global distraction to finally realise his expansionist goals in Taiwan? Would he think twice if he saw a unified, global community in support of Ukraine?
Armenia’s experience confirms the correlation between the international community’s lack of action and an emboldened Azerbaijan. Indeed, the cumulative challenges of the global pandemic, the economic effects of the war in Ukraine felt especially keenly in Europe (which has increased its energy reliance on Azerbaijan as an alternative to Russian gas), as well as the rolling series of domestic challenges in the United States, has not been lost on the Aliyev regime. Many of the world’s greatest crimes have been perpetrated under the cloak of regional unrest – including the genocides against the Armenians, Greek, and Assyrians during the first world war. Astutely, awareness that a foreign war could have local consequences appears to be an important ingredient in caring.
It seems the trifecta lies in the final element: alignment in values and identity. Western democracies continue to rally behind Ukraine because we recognise their fight is something we understand is worth fighting for. We see Ukrainians struggle as a fight for democracy, for individual rights, and the right to self-determination. The war in Ukraine matters to us because we know we need to care if we want to preserve our way of life here at home.
That’s exactly why the attack on Armenia should matter to us. Armenia is a young democracy too, fighting for its right to exist peacefully while its neighbour, led by an autocratic dictator, threatens that peace. These attacks are often painted as localised skirmishes or the rumblings of bad neighbours. The reality is this is the epicentre of a momentous power struggle between regional goliaths – Turkey, Russia, and Iran – the outcome of which will significantly impact the concentration of power in the Caucasus and the Middle East, with broader geopolitical consequences for America and Europe. The only difference is that many of us are unaware of Armenia’s plight.
Who are the Armenians?
Armenia is a democracy with a free press. Many are familiar with its identity as the first nation to adopt Christianity. Once an impressive kingdom trading with the Emperors of Rome, the last millennium saw Armenian territory conquered and absorbed into the Ottoman Empire then, like Ukraine and Azerbaijan, the USSR. Since independence in 1991, Armenia has steadfastly walked the often challenging path to democracy and modernisation. It is approximately one-third the size of Azerbaijan in both landmass and population.
The long-standing conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan has centred on the neighbouring disputed territory of the Armenian Republic of Artsakh, also known as Nagorno-Karabakh, with ethnic Armenians making up the vast majority of the population. Its vote for self-determination is not yet internationally recognised. However, the most recent violence goes beyond this dispute, with Azerbaijani forces targeting civilian infrastructure inside Armenia proper.
Drawing attention to the plight of Armenia and Artsakh has often fallen on the shoulders of celebrities of Armenian descent: Kim Kardashian, the late, great Charles Aznavour, and System of a Down front-man, Serj Tankian. Closer to home, former NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian and former Federal Treasurer Joe Hockey spoke out when the situation required. I know I speak for many when I extend my heartfelt gratitude to the many parliamentarians across the political spectrum in this country and further afield who are standing up for freedom in this oft-forgotten part of the world.
Australia and Armenia have a deep connection.
But the challenge the people of Armenia face needs the world’s attention, just like Ukraine. Australia has a history of doing just that: it was the ANZACs sent to Gallipoli who bore witness to what would be become the first genocide of the 20th century. It was the ANZACs who raised the alarm, passing on their stories to journalists here at home who regularly published their accounts.
Australians were on the right side of history one hundred years ago because we understood what was at stake. It’s time again to stand up, to act, to care – just like we have with Ukraine, because we are all fighting for the same thing: freedom and the right to live in peace.
