It is Armenia`s turn to be destroyed - expert
ArmInfo.The Republic of Artsakh was destroyed, now it is Armenia's turn, expert in oriental
studies Sergey Melkonyan said as he commented on the statements by Armenia's Premier Nikol Pashinyan in the Tavush region of the country.
The expert suggested following in the footsteps of a new preparatory
stage to transform Armenia into an appendage of Turkey and
Azerbaijan.
"Firstly, Nikol and his team are scaring the population with war,
equating it with defeat. Let me remind you that before their arrival,
the Republic of Artsakh and the Republic of Armenia did not lose a
single war. And already under their leadership, Yerevan lost in 2020
and 2022. , and also did not show up for the war in 2023, when
Artsakh fell.That is, the war was equated to defeat and capitulation
only during their period (although one can win a war, or at least not
lose).
Secondly, at first they said "we'll give up Karabakh, we'll live."
Now they say "let's give Tavush back and we'll live." Tomorrow they
will say "we'll give up Syunik and we'll live." This is the same
"salami tactic" - cut off little by little (first from Artsakh, then
from Armenia). Later they will reach the regions of Yerevan. For
example, they will evict everyone from the Kond district in order to
open an Azerbaijani cultural center," he noted.
Thirdly, the expert continued, the country's leadership first called
for violating the sovereignty of the Republic of Armenia, proposing
to change the Constitution. According to him, and now they are
assisting in the violation of territorial integrity, offering to
surrender part of the Armenian territory to the enemy. Melkonyan is
confident that this process will actually legitimize the surrender of
the country's territory under the threat of the use of force in
violation of international law, which will become a common precedent.
At the same time, he wonders what can be done in the current
realities.
"The line of defense in Tavush is one of the most effective. It was
prepared and strengthened in particular by the commander of the 3rd
Army Corps Grigory Khachaturov (Major General, son of Colonel General
Yuri Khachaturov), against whom the authorities opened fake criminal
cases (now many understood why). Obviously, if any territories are
surrendered, the line of defense collapses. As long as it is not
destroyed, it can be effectively defended (but such a task is not
worth it, otherwise Khachaturov would not have been removed and
"criminal cases" would not have been opened against him).
With any country that is not only interested in maintaining the
status quo in the South Caucasus, but is also ready to invest in
maintaining the balance, Armenia can conduct military exercises in
Tavush and beyond. These could be light maneuvers that legitimize
the presence of an external force capable of acting as a deterrent to
Turkish-Azerbaijani aggression.
If no one wants to cooperate on this issue, then put on the agenda
the issue of synchronous exchange of territory: Azerbaijan is leaving
strategic positions on the territory of Armenia, which it occupied in
May and November 2021, as well as in September 2022, with the
participation of a mediator capable to level out the power
imbalance," the orientalist believes.
According to Melkonyan, he does not see indicators on the basis of
which it can be asserted that the government sets a goal to preserve
the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the country (rather,
even the opposite - to surrender as quickly as possible). "There are
also no prerequisites that this regime will leave in the short term.
Therefore, we expect the worst scenarios: unilateral surrender of
territory with the destruction of the defense line and strategic
communications with de-Armenization of border settlements, or a
limited escalation, as a result of which territories will be
deliberately surrendered to the enemy," concluded expert.
Earlier, Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan, during a
conversation with residents of border villages, said that if Yerevan
does not comply with Baku's demands to transfer a number of border
villages to Azerbaijan, then a war will begin. And in case of war,
Trkiye will support Azerbaijan.