Only wise and independent nations in a situation like this show an exceptional ability to choose worthy individuals as their leaders and build their independent destiny by following them. Worthy leaders, in turn, aware of their responsibility to the people who elected and believed in them, do their utmost to elevate their people.
But woe to those ethnic groups who throughout their lives have been accustomed to living only under external guidance, who simply have not developed the ability not only to make independent decisions, but even to think independently.
Perpetually living off the scraps from the master’s table, such nations are always in the position of political “beggars”, pleading for some benefits for themselves, but never fighting for those benefits on their own. Someone else gives them land, someone else fights for them, while they only whine and beg.
Of course, the concept of justice is relative. Not everyone likes beggars, especially brazen ones who claim other people’s things, trying to snatch everything they can. They do not realize that the “masters” will eventually be able to come to an agreement among themselves, leaving you on the margins of life where you have always been… It is obvious that Armenia is repeating the same pattern with a zeal that is beyond common sense.
Having “lost the scent of their master”, i.e., Russia, the Armenians have literally taken to “political vagrancy”. They wander around Europe and America, offering their services, receiving in return the same scraps, but now from several sources. Now, there are French armored vehicles in Armenia’s inventory.
So far, the Armenians have been lucky. The fact is that the Armenians who came to the Caucasus were given land to live on by Russia, which had taken it away from Azerbaijanis, and as a result, the Hays got their own country. And now, having refused the patronage of the Russian Federation, they are confused, not knowing what to do next. Let them continue to delude themselves. But Russia is not so easy, it did not leave Armenia, but left its military base there, so that everyone would remember who is the master here. In this way, Russia is allowing Armenia to rest, to come to its senses after the cruel disappointments it has suffered over the past 30 years because of incompetent leaders.
Repeatedly taken advantage of by everyone, from Yeltsin to Soros, and finally having experienced the “iron fist” of Azerbaijan, Armenia has indeed grown tired and finally broken down. The Armenians even became so disappointed in themselves that they stopped resisting the processes that would lead to the final demise of their country. No rallies, no unrest, no one even goes to vote. And it is understandable. After all, present-day Armenia has never been the historical homeland of Armenians. Armenians are probably the only ethnic group with many more representatives living in other states than in Armenia itself. Therefore, Armenians flee Armenia at the first opportunity.
Meanwhile, Pashinyan keeps knocking on doors like a broker, inviting everyone to invest in the land that is essentially not theirs either historically or politically, trying to convince everyone that Russian base 102 in Gyumri is a temporary phenomenon and that only then will Azerbaijan not risk taking back its Zangezur. Armenia does not have means and resources of its own to survive. And it is unlikely to get any.
In order to sell themselves at a profit and lure buyers, the Armenians propose a new East-West trade route, or some kind of “crossroads of the world”. Such delusional ideas will multiply, as the Armenians need to do something with the country. And while the Armenians are generating fantastic ideas on how Armenia’s territory can be used, the control centers have decided to use it for their geopolitical experiments and far-reaching plans.
Officials literally from all over the world come to Armenia to see and assess its capacity for accomplishing their mercenary goals. For example, to sell the Armenians something that no one else needs, or to resell something through Armenia to Russia to circumvent sanctions, etc.
Of course, the Armenians portray all this diplomatic hullabaloo as a success of Armenian diplomacy in the international arena, as building up international ties and increasing political support. In reality, all that is going on is just a routine viewing and assessment of the possibility of getting some profit from this temporarily orphaned territory, especially since it is populated by a nation with a slave mentality.
But will anyone invest in a country whose borders are guarded by another state? In a country that once promised that it was possible to invest in the territories of Karabakh under its temporary control? But in the end, Karabakh returned under the control of Azerbaijan, and foreign investors lost their money. Will they invest in a country that has hostile relations with two of its five neighbors and strained relations with the third one? Will they invest in a country ruled by an inadequate person, a country with no prospects for building an independent state, in a word, a country without a future? All these questions are, of course, rhetorical.
Why then are there so many representatives of foreign states and international organizations visiting Armenia? Apart from the above-mentioned, there are several reasons for this, from very serious to quite trivial.
One of the main reasons for the interest of non-regional states in Armenia is the desire to spite its neighbors, with whom these countries themselves have strained relations. For example, some do not like the independent policy of Azerbaijan, some do not like the Iranian regime, some cannot accept the fact that Türkiye has become a world power, while others simply want to get Russian troops out of Armenia. Armenia is at the intersection of these geopolitical interests. That is, when they talk about “the crossroads of the world” in Armenia, they mean that Armenia is turning into a testing ground for geopolitical interests in the region, and Armenia does not mind capitalizing on that.
The neighboring countries are well aware of all this and see the threats posed by external players. Will they agree to have a source of potential threats at their borders? Of course not. And how can this be countered if Armenia is de jure an independent territory?
This is a million-dollar question. Armenia is rapidly becoming a source of threat for all its neighbors, even Georgia, because should Russia want to regain control over Armenia, this operation will be implemented through the territory of Georgia.
Given everything that is happening in and around Armenia, the neighboring countries simply must safeguard themselves from potential threats. For this purpose, it is necessary to develop a coordinated mechanism of control over Armenia so that it does not initiate another conflict in the region at the behest of external forces. Armenia should be demilitarized. And security in Armenia should be handled by regional peacekeeping forces.
It would be appropriate to convene a special conference on Armenia, without Armenia itself, and discuss and adopt a plan of joint actions by the regional states to neutralize the threats coming from Armenia at the prompting of non-regional actors.
Peaceful history of the South Caucasus is only just beginning, and Armenia cannot be allowed to constantly disrupt it.
