Our Border Villages: The Soul of Armenia

How many times have you heard, “I love Yerevan. The people are warm. The city is very European, but if you want to experience all of Armenia, go to the villages.” When you connect with any of the hundreds of villages scattered through Armenia proper and Artsakh, we are reminded of both Armenia’s past, present and most importantly, its future. This is particularly true for a large segment of those villages—the ones that line the international borders with neighboring nations. As we have been reminded in the last few weeks, most of those borders are with nations hostile to Armenia. The most significant area that has improved in recent decades has been the former eastern border of Armenia with Azerbaijan. That border area was liberated (Kashatagh and Shahumyan) as the result of the Azeri war in the early 1990s, and these historic Armenian lands have become a part of the Republic of Artsakh. The “new” eastern border for Armenians is the so-called Line of Contact in the eastern provinces of Martakert, Martuni and Hadrut in Artsakh. This is “ground zero” for the Artsakh defense forces who resist Azeri ceasefire violations almost daily. The liberation of Artsakh has also expanded the common border with Iran in addition to the Syunik region. Fortunately, this continues to be a stable area where important commerce exists.