In Sight
Pragmatic Patriotism for Armenia’s Future
Times like these call for honest self-assessment. Our best traits that have enabled our survival as a people are also the ones that put us at risk. We are fiercely independent and clannish. In the years since the Genocide, these attributes have served us well. They hav
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30 years ago “independent” Armenia inherited a magnificent legacy. Soviet Armenia was a highly industrialized and technologically advanced republic. Armenian culture had reached international heights during the Soviet period. None of the regional predators could even dream about invading Soviet Armenia. In 30 short years we utterly ruined Armenia’s industrial base and we exported all of Armenia’s brightest brains. For the last 30 years we have been replacing Armenia’s high culture (that which was obtained during Armenia’s Russia and Soviet periods) with Afro-American and Kurdo-Turkish garbage. This is why I remind people that Soviet Armenia gave us Aram Khachatryan, “independent” Armenia gave us Aram Asatryan. For 30 years Armenia has been importing cultural toxins via Western financed NGOs and the North American Diaspora which has acted as a pack-animal for Western influences in Armenia. Nikol’s NED and Soros financed government is a consequence of all this. And this is why for 30 years we have been one bad international incident away from losing Armenia once again. In a nutshell: This is why we just suffered a historic tragedy. We as a people are self-destructive and politically illiterate. The south Caucasus is an unforgiving and violent place. Therefore, enough! We Armenians are not ready and nor do we deserve independence. Russian Czar’s resurrected Armenia in the 19th century. Stalin’s Soviet Union turned Armenia into a modern republic in the 20th century. Russians still see Armenia as a geostrategic asset. Armenia’s rightful place is with the Russian. As a pragmatic Armenian patriot, the ONLY thing I look forward to now is a closer union between Armenia and the Russian Federation. As long as Armenia maintains its language, church and military, I don’t care what that union looks like.This is Armenia’s only salvation. So, please bring back Aram Khachatryan’s national anthem…
Mr Piligian is the first brutally honest Armenian columnist I have found since the conflict with Azerbaijan started back in September. Most of the Armenian writers I have read are the biggest deniers since the Turks. I see Armenia’s problem as being an unwillingness to evaluate itself in a totally realistic manner without all the emotional baggage that negatively influences it’s ability to make rational decisions as it relates to the future of it’s country.
This analysis is spot on, thank you Stepan. Unfortunately hindsight is 20/20 and the leadership of Armenia over the past 24 years failed to deal realities explained here.
The author seems to forget WHY Russia needed Turkish neutrality then and now. The Western powers that many Armenians idolize are unfortunately the biggest supporters of Turkey. Countries like Germany and The UK have historically undermined Russia by trying to strengthen Turkey and have it suppress Greeks and Armenians. Plenty of Armenians who supported removing Bashar Al Assad for example, now wonder how Turkey managed to find so many terrorists to use in Artsakh. It was NATO/EU that destroyed Libya, Iraq, and Syria. They also have weakened Iran and Russia through sanctions, and have set the stage for the lack of effective Anti-Turkish leadership. Gaddafi and Hussein were notoriously suspicious of Turkey, and could have been great help.
True, but Armenia needs to take what good it can from the west in the form of investments and technology transfer, but they also must keep good relationships with Russia and Iran, especially Russia.