Republic of Artsakh
To effectively represent the collective Armenian-Australian viewpoint, the ANC-AU must strongly support and advocate for the right to self-determination and independence of the Republic of Artsakh. We believe that recognition is fundamental to the safety of the Republic of Artsakh, in their pursuit of peace and security and the prevention of bloody conflicts such as those recently and gravely perpetrated by Azerbaijan in 2020.
An Overview
The Republic of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) is a historically and ethnically Armenian fledgling state located in the South Caucasus bordering Armenia, Azerbaijan and Iran.Following the collapse of the Ottoman and Russian Empires, Armenia and the region of Nagorno-Karabakh fell under Soviet control. In 1921, at the behest of Joseph Stalin, then Commissar of Nationalities, Artsakh was placed under the administrative control of Azerbaijan as part of a divide-and-conquer strategy in the region.
During the seven decades of Soviet Azerbaijani rule, the Armenian population were subject to the deprivation of economic, political and cultural rights that aimed at eradicating the Armenian presence from its homeland. By the beginning of 1988, the Azerbaijani authorities escalated their aggression towards the Armenians of Karabakh in response to mass protest movements across the Soviet Union, following the introduction of the policies of glasnost and perestroika.
As a result of the escalating tensions, the Armenians of Artsakh initiated the first pro-democracy movement in the Soviet Union (Karabakh Movement) and through the right to referendum guaranteed under the Soviet Constitution overwhelmingly demanded to unify with the Armenian SSR.
Responding to these legitimate aspirations for self-determination, Azerbaijani authorities launched a systematic effort to ethnically cleanse the region of its Armenian population. This began with the pogroms of Sumgait, Kirovabad and Baku which by 1991 had escalated into full-scale war.
Throughout the conflict, Azerbaijan regularly employed tactics considered illegal under international humanitarian law, amounting to war crimes, including besieging and blockading civilian populations. In response, the people of Artsakh organized a self-defence effort to secure their territorial borders and prevent Azerbaijan’s further incursion.
A vote for self-determination
In September 1991, the democratically elected leaders of Artsakh exercised their right to self-determination through referendum on the final status of Artsakh. With 82% turnout, over 98% of the population voted to secede from the Soviet Union and declare the independence of the Republic of Artsakh. 1992 marked a turning point in the conflict, with the self-defence forces of Artsakh successfully lifting the Azerbaijani siege of the capital Stepanakert and securing a land corridor to Armenia, which allowed for the provision of much needed humanitarian assistance.By 1994, the Azerbaijani war effort had collapsed and a ceasefire agreement brokered by Russia was signed by the civilian authorities of Azerbaijan, Artsakh, and Armenia in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.
A Thriving Democracy
Despite a lack of progress towards conflict-resolution, the Republic of Artsakh has embarked on a process of social and economic development and the consolidation of democratic institutions. By the accounts of several international NGOs, Artsakh remains significantly more democratic than neighbouring Azerbaijan in areas of freedom of expression, associational and organisational rights, individual rights, and democratic processes.The 2016 April Four-Day War
The 2016 Four-Day War began along the Nagorno-Karabakh Line of Contact on April 1 2016, when Azerbaijani Armed Forces began a dramatic and aggressive assault. According to Azerbaijan, the assault sought to prevent continuous Armenian shelling of civilian areas in Azerbaijan and therefore were forced to start a military operation for this purpose. However, there is no evidence of Armenian shelling. Until the 2020 Artsakh War, these clashes were the worst since the 1994 ceasefire agreement, signed by all parties including the Republic of Artsakh, which the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade recognised as a “party of the conflict”. The scale of the military actions, such as the use of heavy long-range artillery, cluster munitions banned by international law, tanks and suicide drones as well as statements by Azerbaijani officials clearly indicate that their attack was not in self-defence but rather a premeditated military operation aimed at resolving the dispute through the use of force rather than peaceful means and negotiations.The 2020 Artsakh War
During a nationally-televised interview on July 7, 2020, President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan threatened to withdraw from conflict settlement talks and described negotiations as “meaningless”. He further suggested that the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict would be settled through force, challenging the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs principle of non-use of force by stating “Who said?”. Following this interview on July 15, 2020, an estimated 50,000 Azerbaijani protesters marched through the capital Baku, demanding the government fully deploy the army, with some even entering the national parliament.
“Order Us to Go to War” and “Death to Armenians” were some of the Armenophobic slogans being chanted that night in Baku’s main Azadliq (Liberty) Square. Despite the United Nation Secretary General’s plea for an international ceasefire, one chant heard around the world was “End the Quarantine, Start the War”.
On September 27 2020, Azerbaijan, supported by Turkey, launched an aggressive offensive along the Nagorno-Karabakh Line of Contact. In response to constant shelling of civilian populations centres and infrastructure, the Armed Forces of the Republic of Artsakh declared martial law to protect their indigenous homeland and defend their right to self-determination.
The conflict was marked by the use of jihadist mercenaries, constant long-range heavy artillery on schools and churches, missile strikes, drone strikes and the use of illegal cluster munitions which are banned under international law. Additionally, state propaganda and the use of official social media accounts in online information warfare was also utilised by Azerbaijan, through the use of Twitter bots and posting executions of Armenian soldiers online.
During the conflict, several ceasefires were negotiated but broken by the Azeri Armed Forces. Turkey’s participation in the conflict is clear given the presence of Turkish Special Armed Forces and F16 fighter jets at Ganja Airport, the second largest city in Azerbaijan. Turkey’s involvement is thought to be an attempt to extend authoritarian President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s sphere of influence, both by increasing the military standing of Azerbaijan and by indirectly challenging Russia’s long-held influence in the region, similar to the manner in which Turkey is currently active in both Libya and Syria.
Following the capture of the historic Armenian city of Shushi, the second largest city of Artsakh, a ceasefire agreement was signed by Azerbaijan and Armenia mediated by Russia, ending all hostilities in the region.
However, under the agreement, all buffer zones kept by Armenia and the Republic of Artsakh since 1994 were returned to Azerbaijan, who also gained land access through Armenia to Nakhichevan, its exclave bordering Turkey and Iran. Approximately 2,000 Russian soldiers were also deployed as a peacekeeping force along the Lachin corridor between Armenia and Artsakh for a mandate of at least five years in order to ensure that ties between Armenia and the indigenous Armenian people of Artsakh are not severed. Yet, despite this, several outbreaks of violence have broken out in the region. Notably, on the 11-13th December, attacks were launched on Armenian controlled villages of Artsakh (per the new ceasefire agreement), which led to 70 Armenian soldiers being kidnapped by Azerbaijan. Moreover, whilst the ceasefire agreement necessitates the return of prisoners of war, Azerbaijan continues to delay the return of Armenian prisoners of war.
Delegations to the Republic of Artsakh
Mr. John Alexander made history as the first Federal Australian parliamentarian to visit the Republic of Artsakh, when he arrived in Stepanakert with New South Wales State parliamentarian Dr. Hugh McDermott and fellow members of the first Federal-led Australian Delegation to Armenia, reported the Armenian National Committee of Australia (ANC-AU).
The ANC-AU believes that recognition is fundamental to the safety of the Republic of Artsakh, in their right to self-determination and the prevention of bloody conflicts such as those perpetrated by Azerbaijan. This includes not only their full scale war from 1991-1994 which left 30,000 dead, close to a million displaced, and extensive damage to infrastructure and landmine contamination but also again in the Four Day War in April 2016. This event left several hundred dead following Azerbaijan’s deployment of helicopters, tanks, drones, and use of mortar strikes against civilian populated areas within Artsakh.
The ANC-AU spearheads a variety of initiatives that are aimed at developing Australia’s relationship with the Republic of Artsakh, including the sending and receiving of both State and Federal level delegations.
Our most recent contribution and achievement to establishing stronger ties is the Friends of Artsakh Initiative #ArtsakhStrong #MovingMountains which features a group of 40+ prominent Australians, including Federal Ministers and Parliamentarians, a State Premier and fellow State Parliamentarians, a Mayor and Councillors, academics, thought leaders, and heads of several religious and community institutions.
The ANC-AU is dedicated to continuing to represent the interests of Armenian-Australians in the fostering of this relationship and growing closer ties between Artsakh and Australia at the State and Federal level of government.