Armenians in the diaspora live a hyphenated world with advantages and challenges. The cultural aspects of our identity are the most influential factors that drive this dual identity. There have been at least four generations born in this country since our survivors came to these shores. Armenians have been passionate, contributing and loyal Americans. They have accomplished the unexpected in being full participants as Americans while retaining their identity as Armenians. This is no small task in a land where the “melting pot” would seem to sacrifice ethnic heritage. Generally, our existence is focused on culture and religion, but when the world of geopolitics enters the picture, it can create awkward moments.
Since World War II, the majority of this planet has been divided politically between the “east” and the “west.” The latter (the free world) has been led by the United States and Europe, while the former has traditionally been a reflection of Russia, and more recently, China. Most of the tension since 1945 has been through proxy conflicts, such as Korea in the early 1950s and Vietnam in the 1960s and 1970s. Modern proxy conflicts have involved the Middle East in areas such as Iraq and Syria. Either through direct participation or other means of influence, great powers ensure that their interests and influence are maintained. Russia, under President Putin, has publicly acknowledged that the demise of the Soviet Union was its greatest tragedy. With the Soviet Union and the Warsaw Pact nations of Eastern Europe, the Russians were a major influence on the global scene. With the collapse of the Soviet Union, several Eastern European nations gained their independence, and several joined NATO (the west’s primary alliance). Russia’s attempts to re-establish its sphere of influence have reignited the flame of the Cold War. From a global perspective, Russia’s influence in the Caucasus is all about re-establishing their Soviet-era hegemony. Armenia has been strategically impacted by Russia for over two centuries with the Czarist regimes, Bolshevik/Soviet era and now the Russian Federation. Armenia’s survival as a nation has always been linked to the interests of Russia. The 1920 agreement surrendered Armenia’s freedom to prevent continued Turkish genocide and then ceded territory to the Turks to quench their thirst. In a recurring theme, the Russians intervened in the 2020 Artsakh War to stop the killing just in time for the loss of Shushi and the long sought Russian peacekeepers. Political solutions can be bitter and void of justice.
For Armenians in the diaspora and particularly in the United States, the east/west divide has been a challenging matter. Despite ideological differences, geopolitical realities (Nazi Germany) created an alliance between the United States and the Soviet Union during WWII. The “great patriotic war,” as it is historically referred to in Armenia and other areas under the former Soviet Union, was a conflict of survival in those regions. After the war, the USSR quickly evolved into an enemy of the west and the antagonist of the Cold War. During the 50’s and 60’s, the Armenian community was bitterly divided between those favoring a free Armenia and those accepting the reality of a Soviet Armenia. Partisan attacks in the press (read some of the archives) polarized the community further. At the height of the Cold War in the late 50’s and early 60’s, it was particularly difficult to advocate as an American Armenian for Soviet Armenia. It illustrated the complexity of devotion. Armenians were loyal Americans but caught in an emotional scissor jack over their ethnic identity. As the Cold War ended with the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, there was great hope that ideological divides would be minimized as democratic movements emerged in the Baltic states, Poland and the Balkans. Even Russia seemed to embrace a move toward democracy in the early days of the transformation. Within the Armenian diaspora community, an unprecedented era of unity emerged as Armenia and Artsakh declared their independence in September of 1991. No longer would the diaspora debate the merits of Soviet Armenia or the dream of independence. The latter was now a reality. Suddenly the tricolor flag and “Mer Hairenik” were a common thread, not an unintended symbol of our discord. Our communities no longer walked the fine line of being loyal Americans with a heartfelt love of a homeland under the rule of the west’s adversary.
It may be helpful to examine the dichotomy between government policy during conflicts and the stereotypes created for the public. Prior to the 1979 Islamic Revolution, the Iranians were perceived as highly educated and respected people in this country. After the Revolution, especially in the early years, they were treated as pariahs with embarrassing stereotypes. Government policy was established based on geopolitical issues that very few members of the public understood. I know of many respected Iranians in this country who were discriminated against simply because of their ethnicity and political climate. What happened to the perception of the previous year? Identifying the people as the problem when we all know it is the policy of those in power can be dangerous. For example, many here in the US began to identify themselves as “Persians” to avoid the negative stereotype of Iran, despite the fact that they were loyal and contributing members of our society. Some restaurants of Iranian cuisine were renamed “Persian” to survive. Of course, they depended on the relative ignorance of the average American on ethnicities outside of the west.
Applying this to the current conflict in Ukraine, we see the same mentality emerging and the same awkwardness for Armenians. The conflict is the result of the expansionist policies of Russia seeking to reestablish its influence in Eastern Europe. Any attempt by NATO and the west to expand their influence will be met with opposition in an updated version of this east/west chess game. We witnessed this in 2014 with the Donbas region in eastern Ukraine. Using a page out the Stalin playbook, they moved in to support the Russian and Russian-speaking people in that area. Stalin was famous for changing borders and forced migration to dilute historical nationalism. Even today, 25-percent of Latvia and Estonia are of Russian ethnicity.
Territorial integrity is just a buzzword. As Armenians, we have witnessed the savagery of this policy with the “award” of Artsakh and Nakhichevan to rogue Azerbaijan. It is a decision that is still denying justice and destroying lives over 100 years later. Despite the clarity of expansionism by the Russian government, is it fair to blame the Russian people? We will through stereotypes and other forms of bias just as we have in previous conflicts. Average citizens have no venue for communicating with foreign governments. It is much easier to direct the emotion through a stereotype. Unless the Russian citizens rise up in mass protests, we will tend to assign blame to them. We must always decouple the policies of the government and the common citizens who are frequently victims themselves.
Let’s bring this theme a little closer to home. The geopolitical impact of the conflict has been the reigniting of the Cold War. The west has carefully avoided any military deterrence. Arming Ukrainians with small arms and defensive weapons after the invasion will do little. In fact, if it increases the resistance, then many more Ukrainians and Russians will unfortunately die. The prevention window has passed. The sanctions are intended to inflict pain on the Russian economy with the hope that it will alter Putin’s thinking. That may work in a democracy, but Russia will continue to double down. They are past the point of no return. Most of us have no impact on the outcome and are dependent on the saturated media coverage. We have opinions and debate with each other. It is a form of therapy for the insanity of war. One of the outcomes of this conflict has been the decidedly anti-Russia theme that most average citizens are receiving. Is it possible to confront a government policy and not create an atmosphere of bias and stereotype on its common citizens? How will Russian Americans feel in this country? Just like the Iranian Americans? Or the Palestinian Americans? Germany was ruled by the insanity of the Nazis from 1933-1945. The Germans were our enemies, yet in 1945, we discovered a victimized people who became our ally. Those responsible were punished but the vast majority were the people that rebuilt their country. The Japanese stereotype was far worse because of the racial implications. I know and respect many Japanese people. It illustrates what a few dominant powerful individuals can do to a society. We must commit our emotions to a deeper understanding of the causes.
Armenia needs Russia to survive. All the western “support” does not alter the geographic reality. After the horrors of this war, Russia will re-emerge as an even greater enemy of the US. This will not be limited to the political, intelligence and military communities, but among average Americans. Our relentless media and our superficial knowledge will transform the word “Russian.” Armenians love the country where they reside and are loyal citizens. They also reserve a piece of their heart for the homeland. That corner of our heart is not for Russia or even Pashinyan; it is for an ideal that lives in the fabric of our identity and motivates us to contribute each day. It is possible to separate those who control or influence Armenia from our love of the nation. If we disagree with our government policy, we don’t love America any less. For decades, the US government broke our hearts by refusing to acknowledge the veracity of the Armenian Genocide. Did we stop loving America? No. We worked to influence the policy. Armenia is deserving of our love and support. It has nothing to do with the CSTO, Eurasian Economic Union, Putin or Russia. For the Armenian people, it is a love that began over four thousand years ago. Our current state in 2022 is simply another chapter of our multi-volume library. We would all be wise to focus on those responsible for policies and avoid harmful stereotypes. A bigger question to ask is why in 2022, with all the international apparatus and interdependency of the world today, have we failed as humanity to prevent destruction?
One day, every building destroyed in Kyiv, Gaza and Stepanakert will be rebuilt, but the cemeteries reflect our failure. Let us not add to the problem with senseless stereotypes.
Stepan Piligian
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Part of what happens in George Orwell’s 1984 is that whenever alliances change, Big Brother orders all records of previous alliances eliminated. Indeed, John Foster Dulles said “The United States doesn’t have allies, it has interests.”
We saw these sorts of things play out. As WWII shifted to the Cold War, the US government acted as if it had never aligned with the USSR in WWII. Back in the ’80s, one of the US’s favorite autocrats was Iraq’s Saddam Hussein, whom Reagan considered an important bulwark against Iran. In fact, when Iraqi forces accidentally fired on a US ship in 1987, Reagan let the event slide (as Noam Chomsky noted, this was a privilege usually reserved only for Israel). And of course all the while, Reagan was selling Iran weapons so that he could wage a war against Nicaragua’s first free government.
All wars are tragic, but some are justified. Despite what CNN says, history will be on the side of Russia.
What would Uncle Sam do if Texas tried break free from the United States and made a military alliance with Russia? What would Uncle Sam do if China was to deploy troops and missiles in Mexico? What would Uncle Sam do if Russians were to deploy troops or missiles in Venezuela? What did Uncle Sam do in Cuba, Vietnam, Granada, Panama, Iraq, Serbia, Yemen, Libya and Syria?
This war was a direct result of expanding NATO to Russia’s borders, despite 30 years of complaints and warnings by Moscow. This war was a direct result of placing missile systems near Russia’s borders, despite 30 years of complaints and warnings by Moscow. This war was a direct result of fomenting anti-Russian Color Revolutions throughout former soviet space. Ukraine has been a hotbed of anti-Russian activity. The separatist Russian populated region of Donbas was bombed for 8 years before Russians stepped in. This war was also a consequence of Western powers and their allies invading Iraq on false pretexts. This war was a consequence of Western powers and their allies mercilessly bombing Serbia, again based on false pretexts, and giving a major piece of it (i.e. Kosovo) to Albanian Muslims. This war was also a consequence of Western powers destroying Syria, Yemen and Libya via Western-back Islamic terror groups.
Western powers and their allies are responsible for a number of illegal invasions and the deaths of hundreds of thousands of innocent people since 1991. Western powers and their allies are also responsible for a number of bloody “regime changes” and “color revolutions” around the world, including Armenia in 2018, which led to the loss of Artsakh.
It’s about time someone stood up and said – no more! Once again, that someone is the great Russian nation.
I did not see the “civilized world” protesting when Artsakh was mercilessly attacked. I did not see them protesting in this manner when Serbia was mercilessly attacked. I did not see them protesting in this manner when Iraq was mercilessly attacked. I did not see them protesting in this manner when Syria was attacked. I did not see them protesting in this manner when Libya was attacked. I did not see them protesting in this manner when Yemen was attacked.
Therefore, the “civilized world” with all its toxic organizations and institutions, along with their Ukrainian friends can go to hell.
This war will end with Ukraine total capitulation sooner than later. Despite what Western MSM is trying to tell us, President Putin’s war effort in Ukraine has been brilliant. Despite the fact that Ukraine is one of the largest countries in the world and has a well armed and well trained military, around 30% of Ukraine is now in Russian hands. Despite what Western MSM is trying to tell us, all measures are being taken by the Russian military to lessen civilian casualties. Russians have even kept the lights on throughout the country. This restraint by the Russians is causing delays as well as Russian casualties.
For their part, Western officials and journalists have been encouraging and inciting Ukrainian civilians to fight the Russian army to the death. That is why war criminals in the West are encouraging Ukrainians to fight to the death. That is why war criminals in the West are telling Ukrainians that they are winning. In other words, Westerners are doing their best to get Ukrainians massacred for a good “photo op”. And Zelensky is their Grim Reaper in this regard. Ukraine’s deserves it’s “friends”.
No tears for Ukraine from me. Let’s Russia do what it needs to do to that pro-Tatar and pro-Azeri hotbed of Western, Turkish, Israeli and Neo-Nazi activity.
This war will be over sooner-than-later with a historic Russian victory. Russia will become the premier breadbasket of the world after reclaiming territories it lost to the Bolsheviks. Russia will remain the world’s largest producer and exporter of precious and rare metals, rare earths, gas and oil. Russian heavy industry will remain in the world’s top ten. Russia’s armed forces will remain the world’s finest. Russian society, which is not a stranger to adversity and knows how to tighten its belt, will inevitably recover from the “sanctions”. Ukraine however will cease to exist. As for Ukraine’s friends, the power and influence of Western powers will fall even further because no self-respecting nation will trust their money/assets in the West any longer, after witnessing their hysteric overreaction to Russia’s military intervention in Ukraine.
A new world was born on February 24, 2022. Western nations, along with their colonies around the world, will inevitably drown in their neo-marxist, liberal, democratic excrement.
Russians are being wasted. Putin has called in reinforcements. If it drags out longer it will be the end for him. Western supplies continue and have increased to include kinetic drones (Switchblade) on mass from US. Turkey sent military personel. Syrian groups like the Murad division should be there. So this ain’t over. If Putin wins he will want Moldova next (Moldovian Nazis, Russian genocide, bio labs, killer birds, old Crimean car bomb footage, etc) then Romania which will mean WW3. Typical human. Its never enough.