Frozen Conflicts Research Articles

Life-sustaining transboundary survival: rethinking Armenian struggles for heritage

ABSTRACT In September 2020, the ‘frozen conflict’ between the Republics of Armenia and Azerbaijan over the region of Nagorno-Karabakh erupted into full combat when Azerbaijan invaded Armenian towns in Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions. In this war, Armenia lost control over parts of Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions that it had gained in the early 1990s before a ceasefire agreement in 1994. Most importantly, thousands of young people lost their lives. In September 2023, following a nine-month blockade of the region, Azerbaijan invaded and took over, leading to the exodus of the remaining 100,000 Armenians of the region. In this speculative article-provocation, examining heritage discourses popular in Armenia and the Armenian Diaspora, we argue that what counts as heritage in the context of present political claims regarding land, territoriality, and culture insists on what we call national survival that necessitates restrictive lives (especially for women) as well as death (for soldiers). We, thus, ponder the possibility of what we call life-sustaining transboundary survival by imagining a different relation to heritage, drawing on shared inheritance of interconnected culture, knowledge, and water.

The Frozen Conflict in Western Sahara and the Forgotten Question of Sahrawi

Western Sahara’s “frozen conflict” is one of the major and forgotten issues that, so far, the international community could not settle. This article aims to shed light on the historical events and the political responsibilities that led to a protracted stalemate over the Sahrawi question. The paper retraces the historical roots of the claims over the disputed territory by the Polisario Front, as the representative of the Sahrawi people, over the disputed territory, and analyzes their foundations under the light of international law.

Archiving Belarus Political Protests: 2020–2021

ABSTRACT The implosion of the USSR in December 1991 was a relatively peaceful process that led to the creation of multiple new states. However, except for the transitional decade of the 90s, and with several frozen conflicts, the new states that emerged in the post-Soviet space embarked upon “a peaceful authoritarian democratic” reimagining of independence. Some have even admired the peaceful destruction of the USSR in comparison to Yugoslavia’s violent disintegration. However, the narrative about the peaceful secessions does not provide an authentic glimpse of what was yet to come almost thirty years later. Until the 2020 protests against President Lukashenko’s dubious victory, Belarus was relatively “calm,” with a blended economic system reminiscent of elements from the Communist past. The present article discusses how at UC Berkeley Library we archived peaceful protests in Belarus from August of 2020-through March of 2021.

Frozen conflict in the midst of a global pandemic: potential impact on mental health in Armenian border communities.

Armenia has been in a conflict with its neighbor, Azerbaijan, since 1988. Civilians in Tavush Province are regularly affected by ceasefire violations along the armed border with recent escalations further threatening the population’s safety. In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, concerns regarding the mental health of border village residents in Armenia are prevalent. We present context-related factors of psychiatric illness, the prevalence of mental health disorders, and the state of mental health services in Armenia. We recommend directing greater attention towards the mental health status of civilians residing in conflict zones during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

The Invisible Impact of Frozen Conflicts: A Case Study of Foreign Domestic Workers in Cyprus

The Invisible Impact of Frozen Conflicts: A Case Study of Foreign Domestic Workers in Cyprus

Unrecognized States of the Post-Soviet Space: Problems and Prospects

The world order of the 21st century is characterized by transformational processes changing the spatial-temporal coordinates of international life. The features of the present stage are ambivalent processes (integration and disintegration; globalization and deglobalization).The article analyzes the transformation processes in post-Soviet space. The relevance of the study is caused by the presence of several frozen conflicts in the post-Soviet space that have changed the configuration of the region and have been enhancing its conflict potential since they are far from settling and constructive resolution. The conflict potential of the post-Soviet space is increased because of the presence of new state formations: the unrecognized de facto states thePridnestrovianMoldavianRepublicand theNagorno-KarabakhRepublic, and partially recognized Abkhazia andSouth Ossetia.The article also deals with the statehood acquisition and the formation of a new status of Abkhazia, South Ossetia, theNagorno-KarabakhRepublicand Transnistria. It emphasizes the necessity to solve the problem of obtaining external legitimization of the sovereignty of these political-territorial entities not only within the legal framework, but also within the political and social sphere.The actualization of frozen conflicts is only a matter of time, and in the context of the deterioration of relations between global players pursuing their own interests in the region, it can be used as an argument for aggravating the international situation.The principal approach to the study of this problem is the combination of comparative historical, institutional and situational methods that allow us to comprehensively consider the forms of international legitimization of small states in contemporary international relations and analyze conflict situations.The article presents various theoretical concepts on the problem of unrecognized states; the possibilities of further development of these partially recognized states are discussed. The difficulties of political integration and the difficulties of resolving frozen conflicts, in particular, due to the lack of a full-fledged dialogue between all parties to the conflict, are highlighted.The article is valuable as an analytical material for practical use by agencies and organizations involved in the development of political content in theSouth Caucasusregion.The authors conclude that in the issue of the existence of unrecognized States of the post-Soviet space, the time factor is essential because in these territories new generations of people are born who perceive themselves as full-fledged citizens of sovereign States.

Azawad: A Parastate Between Nomads and Mujahidins?

AbstractAs part of the collective work “Inconvenient Realities: Parastates, between Statehood and Frozen Conflict,” this article discusses today’s status of Azawad, a relatively remote parastate occupying the territories of northern Mali, currently entrapped in a low intensity conflict involving non-state actors, local security forces, and external interveners. By retracing the history and the development of Azawad, the article identifies the different and partly contrasting socio-economic and ethnic elements at the basis of Azawadian parastatehood, and it charts the dialectical process of co-construction, which have shaped and inextricably linked together the Azawad and the Malian state. Moreover, it underlines the complex and evolving relations existing between “nationalist” Tuareg rebels and jihadist groups, with the aim to problematize the classical distinction between secessionist and terrorist parastates. By showing the connections between parastatehood, hybrid governance, patronage politics, and statelessness characterizing the situation in the Azawad, the article claims that the current condition of stalled conflict represents a temporary and unstable arrangement, which is paving the way for further parastatehood projects to arise.

Women-to-Women Diplomacy in Georgia: A Peacebuilding Strategy in Frozen Conflict

ABSTRACT This research explores strategies led by women´s grassroots organisations and discusses how they can offer opportunities for peacebuilding in frozen conflict settings such as Georgia and the breakaway territories of South Ossetia and Abkhazia. These conflicts are related to separatist aspirations which are based, on the surface, on ethnic differences. However, the precedent of inter-ethnic dialogue shows that there is not an inherent ‘us-against-them’ narrative separating Georgia from Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Therefore, it is possible to create alternative arenas for dialogue and mutual understanding among the parties. To this end, this study adopts a broad approach to peacebuilding as a process of social transformation of hostile attitudes and exclusive narratives. I argue that women-to-women diplomacy is a peacebuilding strategy with the potential to address the roots of polarisation by humanising the other and identifying common ground for cooperation and inter- ethnic dialogue. The empirical research based on the experiences of women’s organisations in Georgia illustrates the contribution of women-to-women diplomacy to peacebuilding as an alternative platform for coalition building based on the common goal of achieving equal rights.

Georgia’s frosts: ethnopolitical conflict as assemblage

This article is a reinterpretation of ‘frozen conflicts’ as assemblages binding together and strategically orienting a variety of components from both human and nonhuman estates at various scales in order to make a move toward ‘unfreezing’ their research. It then demonstrates how this perspective may be employed in the case of the ethnopolitical conflict in Georgia. The resulting analysis points to several important processes that animate the constant pulsation of the conflict field even when arms are calm and contribute to the dynamic and becoming nature of the conflict and its dynamic (re-)assembling. It illuminates how the visibility function of the assemblage operates and endows with meaning the structure of relations in the conflict field. It traces how the bricolage of Georgian social association transformed over time, notably under Saakashvili, and how it has also been a key element of statebuilding practice in the separatist entities. The analysis moreover demonstrates how the actual instantiations of collective violence form but a fraction of that which takes place in the conflict field, from other forms of political and criminal violence to regime change, state (un-)making through processes of contraction or extension of heterogenous, ‘hybrid’ governscapes including some distinctly virtual ones but betraying real political effects. Finally, it expounds how the ethnopolitical conflict assemblage affixes together a variety of agency from human agents to institutions from local to state governments or the international conflict resolution apparatus in addition to the material (nonhuman) actants enrolled in the translation networks populating the conflict field.

Russia's Frozen Conflicts and the Donbas

Russia's Frozen Conflicts and the Donbas

Vliv Ruska na dynamiku konfliktu v Náhorním Karabachu

Frozen conflict in Nagorno Karabakh has been representing a threat to the regional stability for the last two decades. Sudden escalation of violence in 2016, known as Four-Day War, spurred new discussions on factors influencing the territorial dispute between Armenia and Azerbaijan. While adversaries explain the conflict as a reaction to military provocations or as a rally round the flag effect, this article explains the dynamics of the conflict through the influence of the third party - Russia. Russia considers the Caucasus to be its sphere of the influence and therefor aims to spread its control through strengthening strategic ties with both Armenia and Azerbaijan in order to prevent the West from projecting its power in the region. Russia's role of the superpower has therefor a vast influence on the Nagorno Karabakh conflict development.

Frozen Conflicts and Internal Dynamics of De Facto States: Perspectives and Directions for Research

Frozen Conflicts and Internal Dynamics of De Facto States: Perspectives and Directions for Research

Complexities and Challenges within the Eastern Partnership: Ethno-Political Secessionism, Frozen Conflicts, and <i>de facto</i> States in South Caucasus

Complexities and Challenges within the Eastern Partnership: Ethno-Political Secessionism, Frozen Conflicts, and <i>de facto</i> States in South Caucasus

“Frozen conflicts” as the instrument of foreign policy

“Frozen conflicts” as the instrument of foreign policy

Remedying Displacement in Frozen Conflicts: Lessons From the Case of Cyprus

AbstractThis article examines the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights, in order to assess the effectiveness of the remedies provided and procedures followed by the Immovable Property Commission (IPC), a mechanism that was established by Turkey in order to remedy displaced Greek Cypriots. It recommends changes for the improvement of the IPC and argues that with their adoption, the Commission could act as a blueprint for the establishment of similar remedying bodies in other frozen conflicts as well. Such institutions are not only important in terms of states’ compliance with their human rights obligations, but can also contribute to the resolution of the underlying conflict itself.

Remedying Displacement in Frozen Conflicts: Lessons from the Case of Cyprus

This article examines the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights, in order to assess the effectiveness of the remedies provided and procedures followed by the Immovable Property Commission (henceforth, IPC), a mechanism that was established by Turkey in order to remedy displaced Greek Cypriots. It recommends changes for the improvement of the IPC and argues that with their adoption, the Commission could act as a blueprint for the establishment of similar remedying bodies in other frozen conflicts as well. Such institutions are not only important in terms of states’ compliance with their human rights obligations, but can also contribute to the resolution of the underlying conflict itself.

Colour Revolutions, Frozen Conflicts and the New Silk Road: the Political Struggle in the Post-Soviet Space

As the political centre of the World international stage gravitates toward East Asia, so does the political reality of the Post-Soviet Space. This process works in favour of the Peoples’ Republic of China, is a source of new tensions within the Russian Federation and undermines the effectiveness of US and European policies. The New Silk Road and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank initiatives show that PRC has both the means and the determination to actively broaden its sphere of influence. However, the Chinese patterns of expansion do not have to follow the nature of Russian-Western competition the World got used to after 1991. As the local players are increasingly assertive and PRC economy is slowing down, it’s also important to notice the first clouds gathering over Chinese aspirations in the region. The article presents an overview of the major approaches to political change, international competition and integration trajectories within the Post-Soviet space. It focuses on the major actors active within the Post-Soviet Space, namely the Russian Federation, the United States and the Peoples’ Republic of China, the strategies they follow, mediums they choose to execute their strategies and an evaluation of effects of their activity after the collapse of the USSR.

An Ethnographic Study of Migration from Turkey to Northern Cyprus: Interaction of Confl icting Identities During the Day and Shared Intimacy at Night

Seeking an ethnographically informed understanding of the immigrant/settler experience from Turkey to Northern Cyprus characterised by frozen confl ict, this study can provide an insight into people’s experiences, values and perceptions by focusing on social expressions of identity-based division and the relations between locals and immigrants/ settlers. Participant and non-participant observation and in-depth, informal interviews are the main research tools. Th e article will fi rstly focus on the transformation of identity in Cyprus under socio-historical considerations. Secondly, there will follow an analysis of how identity is performed at hand of two diff erent protests that took place in August 2016. Thirdly, the article will focus on a new meyhane (Turkish tavern) concept particular to Northern Cyprus, where “alternative modernities” (Bozdogan and Kasaba 1997) can be expressed along with repressed practises, portraying the similarities between populations “at night”. Th ese practises may be perceived as a form of resistance by the marginal majority in de Certeau’s terms: eating, drinking habits and music associated with meyhane will be investigated by touching briefl y upon Herzfeldian concepts of cultural intimacy and social poetics.

Russia and the Caucasus

IntroductionRussian influence in the South Caucasus region has a long history. Czar Ivan IV initiated construction of the Tarki fortress on the Caspian Sea as early as 1559. In the subsequent centuries Russia gradually extended control over the surrounding area, culminating with the 1829 Treaty of Turkmenchay that established the Aras River as the expanding empire's boundary with Persia.1 Russian policy toward the region has been dominated by the goal of maintaining a position of influence ever since.Challenges to Russian control have arisen from both internal and external sources. Between 1817 and 1863 Russia fought what it calls the Caucasian War against coalitions of local tribes led by the famous Imam Shamil, eventually prevailing in armed conflict that was prosecuted with incredible savagery.2 Modem ethnic nationalism emerged in a Caucasus subjected to czarist control, with local identities conditioned by the status of Russia as a foil for resentment.3 A tradition of armed resistance to Russian control can be traced from the Caucasian War to the present. Against the background of the Russian Revolutions of 1917, the peoples of the Caucasus launched unsuccessful attempts to consolidate independent states, and during the 1920s and 1930s there were numerous local uprisings in defiance of Soviet power.4 The tradition of militant opposition to Russian domination has reemerged in the post-Soviet period and remains important source of regional instability.The greater Caucasus has also been a subject of geopolitical competition between external actors. During the Crimean War (1853-1856) Ahmed Pasha led Ottoman armies into the Caucasus with the goal of pushing Russia north of the Terek and Kuban Rivers, a campaign whose logic (and unsuccessful outcome) was replayed by Ottoman forces under Enver Pasha during the First World War. The Caucasus was also the target of offensive by Hitler's Wehrmacht during the Second World War, who were beaten back by the Soviet armed forces at cost.5 Parvrn Darabadi characterizes these episodes as part of a larger struggle waged on the global chessboard to control a great Eurasian Central-Eurasia megazone including the Black and Caspian Seas.6 Today's conflicts for influence in the Caucasus region between the U.S. and its Western allies and the Russian Federation fit neatly into this tradition.The promise of a new beginning offered by the dismantling of the Soviet Union has not been fulfilled. Between 1994 and 1996 Boris Yeltsin's Russia fought the First Chechen War in attempt to squelch separatism in the Russian North Caucasus, with catastrophic results. In the Second Chechen War (1999-2009) Russia achieved greater success, but armed resistance in the region has not been eliminated. Against the background of the Soviet collapse Armenia and Azerbaijan waged war over the enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh, while Georgia lost control over the rebellious provinces of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, giving rise to protracted or frozen conflicts that remain unresolved.7 Since the accession of Vladimir Putin to power in the Kremlin in 2000, Russia has committed to a long-term effort to restore something like its traditional dominant status. When the Georgian government of Mikhel Saakashvili sought to regain control over South Ossetia in 2008, Russia responded with a devastating invasion that seemed to make its goals, and the capacity that it possessed to pursue them, crystal clear.8Russia pursues assertive regional policy in the Caucasus consistent with its historical traditions, which portray the region as an inalienable part of the history and fate of Russia, as well as its contemporary geostrategic interests.9 Meanwhile, its longstanding role as a major player in the region continues to shape its perceptions and priorities. Russia's policy toward the South Caucasus is also aligned with a larger vision for post-Soviet Eurasia, which is viewed as the crucible within which Russia will eventually be able to reassert itself as a world power - a dynamic exposed once again by Russian reactions to the conflict that has been unfolding in Ukraine since 2013. …

Conflict Resolution in Frozen Conflicts: Timing in Nagorno-Karabakh

Frozen conflicts have become a persistent phenomenon in the international arena. At the same time, very little research has focused on the factors that have prevented conflict resolution in such cases. This paper focuses on the case of Nagorno-Karabakh and analyses the role of timing for peace initiatives in frozen conflicts. The paper investigates how political, economic and foreign policy institutions that have emerged in Nagorno-Karabakh have consolidated its features of a de facto state and how that in turn has affected the peace process. The findings from the Nagorno-Karabakh case demonstrate that as a de facto state consolidates, the pool of acceptable peace alternatives becomes increasingly limited, eventually leaving the only option for conflict resolution—the recognition of de facto independence.