Karabakh Conflict Research Articles

Narrative nudges to peace in protracted conflict: karabakh conflict as a case study

Recent research in narrative psychology provides insights into the dynamics of collective memories and group identities and how they are exploited by populist and nationalist forces for instigating intergroup conflict. In particular, narrative approach to conflict is important in this regard. In one key way, this approach considers conflicts as competing stories and conflict resolution as narrative transformation and the creation of a common (shared) narrative. In this regard, two questions are of particular concern: 1) What kinds of narratives are conducive to reconciliation between adversaries? 2) Which strategies for dealing with narratives found in intergroup conflicts are effective? As a way of addressing these questions we have developed a theoretical model of narrative intervention which was empirically examined at the context of conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over Nagorno Karabakh. These studies over the two decades have used different perspectives that enable us to identify “common suffering” type of narrative as a way of eliciting positive implicit attitudes and empathy among the conflicting parties. The research has also identified two psychological constructs - “painful collective memory” and “competitive victimhood”, which are often employed by political forces who are not interested in peace and reconciliation in the region.

Azerbaijan’s foreign policy analysis in the perspective of Neorealist Theory: In the example of the Karabakh problem

After Azerbaijan gained its independence, the main problem in its foreign policy was the Karabakh conflict with Armenia. Among the different approaches to solve this problem in foreign policy was the view that a cooperation or conflict-based approach could explain interstate relations and the classical theories of international relations can discuss them; this has been the dominant view in the foreign policy of Azerbaijan.
 We conducted a literature review in developing the conceptual framework for this study. The effect of the anarchic international system on the foreign policy of Azerbaijan, the attitude of the sovereign states and international political organizations in the system, the strategy of Azerbaijan that started with the balance policy, and the 44-day Armenia-Azerbaijan war will be examined from the perspective of neorealist theory. From this, it will be possible to reveal the importance of the balance policy in Azerbaijan's foreign policy.
 This study aims to include the approach to the security problem in the foreign policy of Azerbaijan since its independence, and the strategies it has created to solve the Karabakh problem, using a certain theoretical framework.

Recent Tensions between Iran and Azerbaijan: Manifestations, Causes and Developments

The relationship between Iran and Azerbaijan has been tense since mid-August 2021. There are two main reasons for this: first, the inherent contradictions between the two countries are sometimes eased, sometimes intensified, and interact with each other, so that the bilateral relations have always been in an unstable state of ups and downs, which has great inertia; Second, after the second Nagorno Karabakh conflict, great changes have taken place in the geopolitical pattern of the Caucasus, resulting in new contradictions between the two countries and intensifying the original contradictions. However, neither country is willing to continue to escalate tensions, which have shown several signs of easing since mid-October. In the long run, the bilateral relations will still maintain the characteristics of ups and downs, but Azerbaijan will be the responsible party for the tension between the two countries in more cases than before the second Nagorno Karabakh conflict.

Analysis of the experience of the combat use of unmanned aerial vehicles against anti-aircraft missile systems in the military conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh.

An analysis of the latest military conflicts and local wars in Ukraine, Syria, Libya and other regions of the planet clearly demonstrates that practically in each of them there is a new format of warfare, traditional ideas about the forms and methods of armed struggle on the battlefield are being destroyed, and significant adjustments are being made. in the strategy and tactics of achieving victorious results for each side. One of them was the so-called "Karabakh conflict" between Armenia and Azerbaijan over control over the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh. The events of September-November 2020 in the scientific community have been called the “drone war”. It was thanks to modern drones that Azerbaijan gained air superiority and used it to achieve a strategic advantage in the war. Modern unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are able not only to effectively identify the enemy day and night, direct their own firepower at him, but also independently destroy him at a considerable distance from the battlefield.The article discusses the use of a massive UAV raid against anti-aircraft missile systems (SAM) of air defense (air defense) in a military conflict on the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh. Such use of UAVs for air defense air defense systems led to the rapid depletion of their combat resource and, as a consequence, the further inability of these complexes to solve tasks according to their intended purpose. An analysis of the results of the combat use of air defense systems against modern UAVs showed that the detection range of the air defense missile system by the UAV equipment has become relatively the same, and sometimes even exceeds it. In the course of the military conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh, a new tactic for the use of UAVs was developed, which makes it possible to ensure the guaranteed defeat of the air defense missile system and thereby carry out the functional suppression of the air defense system and ensure the gains of air superiority. For a scientifically substantiated confirmation of the possibility of successful destruction of an anti-aircraft missile-gun complex (AMC) by a UAV group, analytical and simulation modeling was carried out and appropriate conclusions were drawn to resolve the military conflict in Donbass.

Դավադրության միֆը հայկական քաղաքական դաշտում (Արցախյան հակամարտության օրինակով)/Myth about conspiracy in armenian political sector (by the example of the Artsakh conflict)

The purpose of this article is to use the example of the Karabakh conflict to reveal the essence of the conspiracy myth and its influence in political elections. The task of the work is to identify manipulative technologies and tools that are used to achieve power. The work was written using the methods of historical analysis and comparison of facts․ Summing up this article, we can argue that the conspiracy myth is a tool that, by influencing the public consciousness, traps them in an information trap, controls social behavior and pushes them to certain actions. These myths are used in politics as a form of communication between society and a political subject.

Lifestyle as a social problem

The interaction between humans and the environment, including social one, determines their behavior, particularly those associated with general forms of life. Among social forms of life, lifestyle occupies an important place in terms of possibility to influence social development as a whole. The way of life presupposes the stability and sustainability of human existence. At the same time, the nature of the formation of a way of life leads to the need to solve a number of social problems. They are associated with the nature and content of labor, a person's place in the social structure of society. The needs and interests of people play an important role here. Modern trends in the globalization of public relations, the environmental crisis and the struggle for resources predetermine the nature of social problems associated with lifestyle. In Azerbaijan, along with traditional features, the way of life reflects such realities as the Karabakh war, the impact of the market economy, information and communication technologies, and general trends in the globalization of social life. The issues of forced migration due to the Karabakh conflict, the standard of living, the level of development of education and culture, the need to improve the environment, upgrade the structure of needs, both material and spiritual, are among the social problems that need to be solved for improving the way of life and await their solution. These problems require a detailed sociological analysis. First, it is necessary to clarify the content of the main categories associated with these problems.

Integration Processes in the States of the South Caucasus and the Impact of Military Conflicts on their Course in Post-Soviet time

The study examines the key aspects of the integration processes taking place in the states of the South Caucasus after the collapse of the USSR, primarily military conflicts as a result of the unbalanced ethnic policy of the former metropolis. And it is they that largely determine the course and direction of the integration policy of Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia. The methodology of the work is in the use of a comparative-historical and problem-research method of research combined with a critical analysis of researches related to the process of the post-Soviet transformation of the South Caucasus. The scientific novelty of the research lies in expanding the scientific understanding of the peculiarities of the existence of the newly independent states of the South Caucasus, determining the degree of influence of military conflicts on the integration prospects of the countries of the region. Analysis of studies, publications in the media, speeches and statements of the leaders of states allows us to determine how the conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh, the Russian-Georgian confrontations in Abkhazia and South Ossetia are reflected in the foreign policy course and the search for allies to resolve them.
 It has been established that the course of integration processes in the South Caucasus is still under the influence and serious pressure from the Russian Federation, which actively hinders the integration intentions of the countries of the region. The search for its place in the new realities of the era of independence has become the reason for such a phenomenon as a multi-vector foreign policy. At the same time, it is obvious that as a result of military conflicts, the vector of Georgia's integration is aimed at the state’s entry into NATO as a guarantor of security against Russia's neo-imperial aggression. Armenia, as an aggressor in the Karabakh conflict, chose a generally pro-Russian integration vector, while Azerbaijan focused on an alliance with Turkey.

Peran Media Sosial Sebagai Alat Propaganda Dalam Konflik Nagorno Karabakh Antara Armenia Dan Azerbaijan

The purpose of this paper is to explain how social media has become a new space for political discussion. The use of social media to report on conflicts, influence political perceptions, voice opinions about conflicts, and solicit public support around the world. As is the case with the Nagorno Karabakh ethnical conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan which cannot be separated from social media. In this conflict, social media was also used to ask for public support around the world to side with one of the countries in the Nagorno Karabakh Conflict. This paper will also examine how governmental and non-governmental actors use social media as a tool of propaganda and how the international community is a part of spreading propaganda in the Nagorno Karabakh conflict. To help the author in the analysis process, at least the author uses several conceptual frameworks, including the role of social media in international relations, propaganda and identity conflicts in international relations.
 Keywords : Armenia; Azerbaijan; Ethnic Conflict; Nagorno Karabakh; Propaganda; Social Media

IRAN, SAUDI ARABIA AND TURKEY: EMERGING RELIGIOUS IDENTITY OF AZERBAIJAN

The authors discuss the evolution of religious identity of Azerbaijan and the impact of Middle Eastern actors (Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey) on the process. Today, the pro-Islamic leaders of the Middle East are attempting, with the persistence that can hardly be overestimated, to move into the Southern Caucasus, one of the world’s strategically important regions. Thus, the uncompromising rivalry of religious ideologies is hardly surprising. It means that the national and religious identities of post-Soviet Azerbaijan have come to the fore in the context of Iranian-Turkic, Iranian-Arab and Shi‘a-Sunni confrontation. Today, there are enough drivers behind the already obvious awareness of their religious identity among young Azeris. The complicated search for national and religious identities in independent Azerbaijan is driven by an outburst of national and religious sentiments during the protracted Karabakh conflict and two wars with Armenia (in 1992-1994 and 2020). The process is unfolding under the huge influence of theocratic Shi‘a Iran, the closest neighbor with its twenty-five million-strong Azeri diaspora; proliferation of the puritanical Wahhabi teaching of Saudi Arabia and Salafism as its export variant throughout the Caucasus, and, last but not least, strategic rapprochement with Turkey that is moving away from nationalism towards Islamism. This has made Azerbaijan a fertile soil for a confrontation within the multipolar Islamic world, which is expanding the geography of its conflicts to the Southern Caucasus. The proxy wars in Syria and Iraq, in which the Shi‘a-Sunni confrontation is also obvious may destabilize the Caucasus in the future. Here the authors assess the impact of the Middle Eastern heavyweights—Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey— on the process of shaping the Azeri religious identity as an Islamic political factor.

THE ISRAELI FACTOR IN IRAN-AZERBAIJAN RELATIONS (2005-2013)

The article deals with Israel’s factor which influences Iran-Azerbaijan relations. The article highlights the following issues when assessing the impact of the Israeli factor on Iran-Azerbaijan relations: • Represent Israel’s foreign policy priorities on Azerbaijan, • Assess the position of the Islamic Republic of Iran on Azerbaijan-Israel cooperation and analyze Iran's policy within this context, • Analyze Azerbaijan's motives for strengthening cooperation with Israel. The nuclear program, Iran's missile systems, the Shia factor, the Iranian-speaking peoples of Azerbaijan (Tats, Talish), the activities of Azerbaijani Shia opposition figures, the 760-kilometer border between Azerbaijan and Iran – these are the main factors underlying Israel's policy towards Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan first of all justified the establishment of relations with Israel with the expectation of receiving military-political assistance from Israel in the settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict. During the presidency of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (2005-2013), when one of the scenarios for suspending Iran's nuclear program was considered a military attack, the territory of Azerbaijan was considered a platform for attacking Iran. While Baku has made every effort to exclude the Iranian factor in Azerbaijan-Israel military cooperation, the Iranian military-political management has always been skeptical of Baku's assurances, claiming that Israeli drones could easily be used for reconnaissance against Iran. • During Hassan Rouhani's presidency, as compared with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's presidency, positive developments took place in the relations between Azerbaijan and Iran, and bilateral economic cooperation strengthened. In order to weaken Israel's influence in Azerbaijan, Iran replaced its policy of harsh response to Azerbaijan with economic cooperation. Iran was more concerned about the growing influence of Israel in various spheres in Azerbaijan than the use of a possible Israeli threat against Iran from the territory of Azerbaijan, which has always been raised in the past. • Azerbaijan tried to bring counterargument against Israel-Azerbaijan relations with Armenia-Iran relations. • In order to weaken Iran's religious influence, Azerbaijan, on the one hand, repressed the country's Shiite opposition figures, and on the other hand, Baku managed to obtain military-political support from Israel by exploiting the Iranian-Shiite "threat". • According to Iranian experts, the strategic relations between Azerbaijan and Israel have been established in the South Caucasus, in particular due to Iran's wrong policy towards Azerbaijan. • Currently, if in the Middle East, Iran more or less manages to control the threats appearing from the proxy war with Israel, than on its immediate border Iran is trying to avoid a direct confrontation with Israel. During the Second Artsakh War, the transfer of Israeli UVC of the territory of Iran, and in this regard, Iran's cautious statements are evidence of that.

Territorial Conflict, Domestic Crisis, and the Covid-19 Pandemic in the South Caucasus. Explaining Variegated EU Responses.

Territorial Conflict, Domestic Crisis, and the Covid-19 Pandemic in the South Caucasus. Explaining Variegated EU Responses.

Suspending the antagonism: situated agonistic peace in a border bazaar

This article aims to understand how local communities affected by protracted conflicts could maintain a capacity for agonistic interactions in their everyday encounters on the margins of the hegemonic control of conflict-inducing narratives. The article analyses the Sadakhlo bazaar on the border between Georgia and Armenia as a possible example of such interactions. In the 1990s and early 2000s, it was the setting for daily encounters of Armenians and Azerbaijanis, whose ethnonational identity narratives have been polarised and heavily securitised due to the Nagorno–Karabakh conflict. The authors suggest that the bazaar in this case appeared as a concrete space of embodied practices of thin recognition of the otherwise antagonised other where the antagonism was not contested but suspended. The article conceptualises the bazaar as a local site of situated agonistic peace by undertaking a critical assessment of theoretical calls concerning the ‘ontological security dilemma’ and ‘transformative power’ of mundane experiences.

The Second Karabakh War through the Prism of the Most Influential British Press, 27 September-10 November 2020

This article deals with the analysis of the coverage of the Second Karabagh War by the influential British press. The mass media plays an important role in shaping or influencing people’s opinions on conflicts. The Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno Karabakh Conflict is one of the conflicts that has got and presently is getting international press coverage. The news coverage has great importance in informing the world how Armenia invaded and destroyed Karabakh. And as the British press is enough influential in western countries and plays an important role in shaping the opinions, its coverage of the conflict is very important. Another important point is that the United Kingdom has long been one of the important geostrategic actors in the system of international relations. Although the UK's international influence is relatively weak in modern times, the country is still considered one of the world's power centers. 
 The United Kingdom is also home to concepts such as parliamentarism, democracy, liberalism, and freedom of thought, speech, and press. All these factors make the analysis of the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in the British press especially relevant. One more important fact that is worth to mention that Azerbaijan is a country rich in oil and gas reserves. This fact draws the attention of many individuals and legal entities in the United Kingdom, including BP, to Azerbaijan. The economic interests of transnational companies coincide with the development trends of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and, as a result, take different directions. Taking this into account, Azerbaijan is objectively interested in gaining access to the political and intellectual elite of the United Kingdom through these individuals and legal entities. The links of transnational companies to Azerbaijan's national security are one of the subjects of research in the British press. This, in turn, increases the relevance of the study of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in the British press.

Մեծ Բրիտանիայի հակահայ քաղաքականությունը Ղարաբաղի հարցում (1918–1920 ԹԹ.) և արդի իրավիճակը

The Armenian people were hopeful that after the capitulation of Turkey in the First World War (WWI) and the dislocation of the Allies troops in Transcaucasia, territories of Western Armenia and Transcaucasia would be included within the First Republic of Armenia. However, the Armenian people experienced another disappointment. In 1918–1920, Great Britain, who had gained dominance in Transcaucasia, ignoring the promises given to the Armenians during the war and their particular contribution to the victory of the Allies, adopted anti-Armenian attitude towards the Karabakh conflict. By constant pressure on the Republic of Armenia and Artsakh, the British strived to achieve hegemony of Azerbaijan over Karabakh, nevertheless, the uncompromising stance and unwavering resistance of the Armenians of Artsakh thwarted the anglo-azerbaijani plan. The anti-Armenian attitude of Great Britain was shaped by its strategic plans. Its main purpose in Transcaucasia was to gain control over the economic and military-political life and withdraw Russia from the region and the East in general. With the aim to carry out this important plan, it chose as an ally its recent rival in e WWI – Turkey, and Azerbaijan, which was created with the latter’s help. This selection was influenced by their military-economic potential and anti-Russian attitude. Nowadays (since 1988) when the Armenians of Karabakh struggle for their reunion with Armenia, from which Karabakh was cut off and annexed to Azerbaijan with the help of Soviet Russia on July 5, 1921, the British adopted anti-Armenian attitude towards the Karabakh conflict once again. They supported the aggressive actions of Azerbaijan and its ally Turkey by all means. The United Kingdom’s attitude proceeds from its political and economic interests. The United Kingdom has a large share of Azerbaijan’s most profitable oil mines, as well as the Baku–Tbilisi–Ceyhan oil pipeline, which was put into operation in 2006 due to its active efforts (30% of the shares in the pipeline are owned by British Petroleum). The anti-Armenian and pro-Azerbaijani policy of Great Britain activated during the Second Karabakh War, which began on September 27, 2020, by Azerbaijan’s aggression against the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (the Republic of Artsakh). British companies expressed their support to Azerbaijan during this war have signed new economic agreements as well as have provided the other side with the maps of mined areas. In October, 2020, during the session in the UN Security Council, the UK suspended resolution of the OSCE Minsk Group member countries with an appeal to stop the war. Hence, the UK supported both war, intervention of the third party countries and terroristic groups in it. Thus, England once again betrayed democracy, justice, right of nations to self-determination, though the United Kingdom publicly presents itself as a protector of these values.

Armenia After the Karabakh Conflict

Armenia After the Karabakh Conflict

Citizenship, National Identity, and Nation-Building in Azerbaijan: Between the Legacy of the Past and the Spirit of Independence

AbstractThe aim of this article is to shed light on the process of nation-building and the formation of national identity in post-Soviet Azerbaijan. The peculiarity of Azerbaijani nation-building is that the debates on how to build a nation and define national identity were nourished by two discourses: Azerbaijanism (Azerbaycançılıq) and Turkism (Tűrkçűlűk). The article focuses firstly on the discourses on national identity and nation-building in the pre-independence period while elaborating on the roots and premises of the nationalist independence movement. Secondly, it highlights the discourses of nation-building in the post-independence period while discussing the meanings attributed to national identity and nationhood. It shows how these two discourses shaped the existing identity formation in Azerbaijan with a particular emphasis on citizenship identity, marked by multiculturalism, hospitality, tolerance, and patriotism. Yet one can still categorize the country as having an incomplete nation-building process, due the violation of territorial integrity as a result of the Karabakh conflict.

ТОРГОВО-ЭКОНОМИЧЕСКИЕ ОТНОШЕНИЯ ИРАНА И АРМЕНИИ В КОНТЕКСТЕ СБЛИЖЕНИЯ ИРАНА С ЕВРАЗИЙСКИМ ЭКОНОМИЧЕСКИМ СОЮЗОМ

The article analyzes the history of development and current state of relations between Iran and Armenia in the field of economics. It is shown that those relations developed progressively after the declaration of independence by Armenia and up to the present time. Despite the difference in religion, Iran and Armenia actively interact in the political and especially in the economic sphere, where the energy and transport cooperation are developing most dynamically. Over 5 thou- sand companies with Iranian capital are actively working in Armenia. Nevertheless, the potential of bilateral relations remains largely unrealized particularly due to the lack of the necessary infrastructure, weak cooperation in the banking sector and in- sufficient investment activity. Parties expected a sharp intensification of economic ties after the deepening of Iran’s integration with the Eurasian Economic Union, especially, after the entry into force of the Free Trade Agreement. However, due to the coronavirus pandemic, bilateral trade has dropped markedly. After the recent decision of the Armenian leadership to temporarily ban the import of goods from Turkey due to dissatisfaction with its position in the Karabakh conflict, a sharp increase in trade between the two countries is expected in the near future.

ВЗГЛЯДЫ ИРАНСКИХ ПОЛИТИКОВ И ЭКСПЕРТОВ НА ВООРУЖЕННЫЙ КОНФЛИКТ В НАГОРНОМ КАРАБАХЕ В 2020 Г.

The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict escalated sharply in the autumn of 2020, which led to numerous casualties. As a result of the war, most of the territory of Karabakh came under the control of Azerbaijan. The development of the situation was monitored in all neighboring states, including Iran, which was in the immediate vicinity of the war zone. The article examines the position of Iranian politicians, clerics and experts on the reasons, course and result of the Karabakh conflict. It is shown that almost all of them fully accept the position of Azerbaijan and consider Armenia an aggressor, which must return to Azerbaijan all the territories belonging to it under international law. The Supreme Leader also adheres to this position, what seems to be very important, given his special role in the Iranian political system. The Iranians are especially concerned about the deaths of civilians who have nothing to do with the conflict. In that regard, it was very often said about the need for an early ending of hostilities and the resolution to the conflict by diplomatic means. At the same time, Iranian experts mainly emphasize the need for Iran not to support any of the parties in order to be able to act as an intermediary between them.

THESES OF AZERBAIJANI PROPAGANDA DURING THE 44-DAY WAR

This article is aimed to figure out and analyze the main theses of Azerbaijani propaganda, developed and used during the 44-day war in the fall of 2020. The author's task is to identify new theses that will further determine the main trends in the information war against Armenia and the NKR. In this work, the author firstly uses the monitoring of Azerbaijani media, speeches of officials, press releases and statements of government agencies, opinions of experts and lobbyists as a tool for collecting data. At further stages, the method of structural and content analysis of texts is used. As a result, the author outlined and structured the main mega-theses, theses and micro-theses of Azerbaijani propaganda, analyzed the key areas of work in the future, and worked out recommendations for the Armenian side. In particular, Azerbaijan intends to intensify the presentation of the potential and opportunities in the occupied territories, direct efforts to raise the patriotic spirit among the Azerbaijani citizens, as well as keep demonstrating the politico-military and economic superiority over Armenia and NKR in the future. Proceeding from this, in order to counteract the work of Azerbaijani propaganda, the Armenian side needs to develop and set out a clear official position on key issues of the Karabakh conflict settlement in accordance with the post-war realities, to consistently promote its position, antitheses, as well as present evidence of Azerbaijan's war crimes in international structures, foreign media and on international platforms.

OSCE Minsk Group in resolving the Karabakh conflict

OSCE Minsk Group in resolving the Karabakh conflict