Last week we had the pleasure of addressing the “thoughts” of a representative of an Azerbaijani group in the U.S. He’d felt the need to attack me because I “dared” to find fault with MY government’s (you know, the people that I help elect to REPRESENT ME) policies regarding Azerbaijan and Turkey, and to correspondingly fault a colleague of that representative.
Then we have an interview with Elnur Aslanov, Chief of the Political Analysis and Information Department at the Azerbaijani Presidential Administration, from News.Az titled “Information war against Armenia ‘involves every Azerbaijani.’” Therein, we are treated to the usual muddle of distortions, half-truths, and creative history that Azerbaijani sources are noted for, easily matching their big brothers in Turkey—absurdity-wise. From this piece we “learn” that the high-priced, oil-money-paid-for, propaganda onslaught is allegedly making inroads in dispelling Armenian “lies.” The topics are Khojaluh, characterization of the Artsakh situation, and even President Sarkisian’s recently rediscovered backbone in dealing with Azerbaijan and Turkey. I won’t even bore you with, nor lend credibility to, some of the statements passed off as “facts” in this piece. It’s tough not to laugh and gag simultaneously.
Of course we mustn’t forget about President Aliyev’s incessant, and, in the last couple of years more frequent and strident bellicose bombast about re-stealing Artsakh. Coupled with this is the obscene amount of money he spends in oil treasure building up Azerbaijan’s armaments instead of building up the country’s infrastructure, developing the economy, and helping its impoverished majority. I suspect the main reason for the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars Railway, a meeting about which was reported in the January 24 Asbarez, is really to create an easier way to ship arms from Turkey to Baku, be that legally or otherwise.
None of this is new in substance. But the intensity, frequency, and shrillness are suggestive. It’s been nagging at me, without my even being too aware of the oddity of the situation. Last week, I received a very interesting article published by the Harvard International Review, “Azerbaijan’s Chances in the Karabakh Conflict” authored by Alec Rasizade. I think I know why Azerbaijan, its government, and minions throughout the world are so restive and aggressive of late.
After a quick summary of the conflict in Artsakh, Rasizade describes Azerbaijan’s oil and gas production, history, and reserves. It seems the reserves, for both oil and natural gas are inflated. In the case of oil, after almost two decades of production, and no major new discoveries, the reserves claimed by Azerbaijan reflect a decrease of only one year’s worth of production. Perhaps this is Azerbaijan’s version of new math. For gas, Azerbaijan’s reserves, whether inflated or not, are described as insignificant. The country’s era of “big oil” production is expected to peak this year, and be over by decade’s end. The way profits from current production are misused, i.e. no alternative economic development and misgovernment, may well lead to instability with the coming end of the oil money gusher. In conclusion, Rasizade says the Armenian Diaspora is balancing Azerbaijan’s oil money (and the relevance to the West oil begets).
So there’s our answer. Baku and its front groups worldwide are desperate to steal back Artzakh before they become irrelevant to the rest of the world. They have a very small window of opportunity.
So it’s up to us, the Diaspora, to keep Azerbaijan wasting its money and getting nowhere. Meanwhile we also must support and strengthen our two republics so they can withstand the increasing onslaught, verbal for now, but perhaps military in the future. How do we do this? We support and criticize, help and correct, applaud and condemn, all as appropriate. No one is perfect, and to pretend otherwise and avoid applying friendly pressure when our compatriots are on the wrong track serves only the bully to the east of our homeland. Let’s rise to that occasion by redoubling our efforts in the political and media spheres.
Garen Yegparian
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Wow, the envy, the hatred, the desperation … it is all boiling up and out in this pathetic piece of ad hominem. It is clear the author is green jealous of Azerbaijan’s economic potential. He cites this one article by an Iranian academician (biased perhaps?) to dispell the “myth” of Azeri oil reserves. As if the companies investing billions in Azeri oil, with all their experts and tools, know less than some student sitting in an armchair. Whether you like it or not, the following is going to happen: Azeri oil money will be used to build its military, it will be spent to buy Russia’s neutrality, and Azeri will free its lands from the occupiers. It is not just Azeri who call Armania the occupiers. There are UN resolution, European org documents, calling it the same. In the meantime, it is the Armenians in Armenia (not those brave ones in US of course) are dirt poor. And don’t you worry about Azeri infrastructure. Clearly you know nothing about Azeri economy. It is one of the fastest growing economies in the world, and anyone visiting both Baku and Yerevan describe how patheticly behind the latter seems (stuck in 80-90s).
“jj” what is there to be envious about ? straight out stupidity or your criminality same old idiotic azeri propaganda? you can utter all the nonsense until all the cows come home. but just as soon as you lift a finger you will be sent ti heaven in a heartbeat. you would then wished is it was the nineties is because what will follow to you will be final and irreversible.
Mr. Yegparian,
To which “two Republics” are you refering to? The recognized nation of Armenia is already well established. So which is the other “Republic” (I hope that you aren’t refering to the illegal occupation of the NK region!)? Also, how much natural resources (gas, oil, etc.) does Armenia have? You belittle Azerbaijan by calling it names, constantly putting it down in any way possible. By doing so then, you must be promoting Armenia’s wealth, sturdy infrastructure, outside investments, military strength, etc. Please feel free to do so. I would be very interested and like very much to read your comparrisons and contrasts of the two nations. I look forward to you addressing this in your next article. Thank you.
Here is an example of the Azeri Oil revenues at work:
Azerbaijani-American Council (AAC) & Azerbaijan Society of America (ASA)
The 2011 KHOJALY MEMORIAL WEEK CALENDAR
1. Khojaly Discussion Panel, San Francisco, CA – Date: February 18-23, 2011.
2. Khojaly Memorial Conference, Toronto, Canada -Hart House, University of Toronto. Date: February 24, 2011 12:00pm-5:00pm.
3. Khojaly Discussion Panel, Washington, DC—Date: February 25, 2011
4. Khojaly Discussion Panel, New York – Date: February 26, 2011
Please attend, protest, ask them questions, print out and distribute information about the BIG AZERI Khojaly Lie:
http://www.xocali.net – proof of Azeri propaganda lies with pictures and facts in many languages – please support this site – it will be attacked again by Azeri hackers comes February.
http://en-voskanapat.do.am/news/2010-02-24-40 – True account of what happened with Khojaly inhabitants as they left Khojaly via the Green Corridor provided by Artaskh forces and were killed by Azeris who wanted to topple their president of the time and install Heydar Aliyev as the Dictator.
http://www.nkrusa.org/nk_conflict/khojaly.shtml – Khojaly Fact Sheet from the Embassy of Artsakh in Washington site.
constantly putting it down in any way possible? is that what your kind does all the time for you fascist king aliev al the ways down to your lonely azeri sheeple??
illegal occupation of the NK region? there we go again whit your usual azeri nonsense. Artsakh never has been, and never will be part of your azerbaijan
Armenia belittle Azerbaijan by calling it names, constantly putting it down in any way possible?!? you must be smoking something very strong. because that’s exactly the kind of criminal fascistic hatemonger regime has been doing ever since you “azeris” got established a century ago.