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Armenia Marks Anniversary Of Pogroms In Azerbaijan Amid Growing Risk

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  • Armenia Marks Anniversary Of Pogroms In Azerbaijan Amid Growing Risk

    ARMENIA MARKS ANNIVERSARY OF POGROMS IN AZERBAIJAN AMID GROWING RISK OF WAR
    by: Lilit Gevorgyan

    Global Insight
    February 29, 2012

    Vigils were held in Armenia, self-declared Nagorno-Karabakh Republic,
    and in countries with large Armenian communities on 27-28 February
    to commemorate the 24th anniversary of the pogroms of Armenians in
    the Azerbaijani city of Sumgait in February 1988, and in January
    1990 in the Azerbaijani capital Baku. The events were also marked
    by United States House floor statements by a number of US Congress
    Representatives. The anniversary of the twin tragedy that took place
    under Soviet rule comes at a time when Armenia and Azerbaijan are
    drifting further apart as a peace deal remains elusive.

    Twenty-two years have passed since the outbreak of the conflict over
    the decision by the mainly ethnic Armenian Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous
    Region to leave the then Soviet Azerbaijan and join Armenia, another
    Soviet republic. A war resulted in the deaths of 30,000 people and
    the displacement over a 1.5 million people on both sides. Since the
    1988-1994 war which ended with Azerbaijan's defeat the latter has
    been growing in its military confidence and is seeking a military
    solution to the problem. The ongoing revamping of the Azerbaijani army
    thanks to energy export-generated income has alarmed international and
    local observers. Perhaps most worryingly the anti-Armenian rhetoric
    continues to increase in Azerbaijan--a trend noted and criticised by
    EU bodies--which in turn lessens the chances of the Caspian country
    to convince the Nagorno-Karabakh Armenians to consider the option
    of returning under Baku's control. The recent arms deal between
    Israel and Azerbaijan worth USD1.6 billion and open statements by
    Azerbaijan's president of potentially choosing the military solution
    to the conflict add to growing concerns that the war could return to
    the region in the near future.

    Significance:Compared with the actual conflict the number of
    Armenian victims of the pogroms in Sumgait and Baku are in the
    hundreds. Yet these events stand out as the pogroms were carried
    out by Azerbaijanis in the cities very far from the actual zone of
    conflict and before the outbreak of the full-scale war in 1991 and
    there is more evidence of collusion between the Kremlin and the local
    Soviet authorities in the run up to the events. Lack of recognition
    by current Azerbaijani authorities of the ethnic persecution is often
    cited by the Nagorno-Karabakhi Armenians as a sign that not much has
    changed in modern-day Azerbaijan in terms of ethnic tolerance, hence
    return under Baku's control is not realistic and bears the threat
    of more ethnic cleansing. Part of a peaceful solution of the current
    dangerous stand-off between the parties is addressing the grievances
    on both sides caused by the conflict but there are no signs of any
    truth and reconciliation processes starting anytime soon.

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