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KARABAKH’S INTERNATIONAL RECOGNITION AS MEANS TO ACHIEVE POLITICAL SECURITY

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  STEPANAKERT - Ensuring the security of the people of Nagorno Karabakh (NK) is the central issue in the settlement of the conflict with Azerbaijan. The current generation of the people of Karabakh faced a real threat of total physical annihilation in the course of the large-scale armed aggression started by Azerbaijan in 1992. The human and material costs of the war were high, resulting in thousands of casualties and affecting practically every Karabakh family. Therefore, the security issue for NK is directly linked to the provision of the right to life, without which, as the French philosopher Charles Fourier put it, “all other human rights become irrelevant.” Karabakh: past oppression and persistence of existential threat The elderly in Karabakh remember how, throughout the entire period of NK’s history as a part of the Azerbaijani SSR, national authorities systematically violated the rights of the Karabakh Armenians, applying repressive politics meant to transform the demographic makeup of Artsakh. The natural development of the economy was restrained and artificially limited ethnic Azerbaijani areas. The same policies promoted the influx of ethnic Azeris into NK. The Armenians of Karabakh experienced the whole weight of the Soviet repressive apparatus. There were cases of assassination, disappearances and torture, arbitrary arrests, show trials of political detainees, repressions of dissidents and open deportation of inhabitants of dozens of settlements. The Armenian population of the autonomous region did not submit to the discriminatory politics of the Azerbaijani authorities and repeatedly brought up the issue with the central USSR authorities. Such attempts were during every decade of Soviet era, even in times of the height of Stalinist rule. However, made in a totalitarian state they were all turned down, often brutally. Nearly the entire period of the NK’s history as a part of Soviet Azerbaijan was characterized by the violation of fundamental human rights – the right to life and freedom. This and the oppression in general were the core reasons for the conflict in Nagorno Karabakh. Throughout the Soviet years Azerbaijan pursued “non-violent” policies for driving out the indigenous Armenian population from NK. After the break-up of the USSR and its attainment of independence the Azerbaijani political leadership resorted to a direct military aggression against Karabakh. What is more, in the early stages of the conflict the strategy of blocking all transport routes to create a regime of a total blockade openly proved that Azerbaijani politics towards the Armenian population of Karabakh went through an essential transformation: the objective changed from deportation to physical annihilation. Thus, since its very first appearance on the global political map in 1918, Azerbaijan had the objective to destroy Artsakh in one way or another. Throughout the entire period of the history of their relations, Azerbaijan, at the time of all of its regimes, posed an existential threat to Nagorno Karabakh. And the issue of external security to NK’s existence still remains a very relevant one today. NKR and Azerbaijan exist – and develop – as separate entities At the same time, NK does not threaten Azerbaijan’s security and development. On the contrary, after NK legally separated from Azerbaijan and a ceasefire was called, the latter demonstrated rapid economic growth. Statistical data, presented by the Azerbaijani President in spring of this year, demonstrate this. According to the President, during the last four years, 2004-2007, Azerbaijan’s economy experienced a growth of nearly 100 per cent or in other words it doubled in size. Azerbaijan’s budget spending has been growing rapidly and is set to reach $12 billion in 2008. This is ten times more than in 2003. In terms of budget expenditure per capita, Azerbaijan is among the leading states in the post-Soviet space and is ranked highly worldwide as well. Therefore, it can be established that the Nagorno Karabakh Republic (NKR), within its post-war boundaries, does not impede Azerbaijan’s development in any appreciable way. Furthermore, it is also obvious that Azerbaijan’s claims on Karabakh lands are a matter of mere political ambition, and not an essential factor in the development of the state. Existing territorial division and Karabakh army uphold stability The conflict’s territorial configuration today allows regional states to develop. It also helps ensure the right to physical security and state independence for the people of NK. At the same time, NKR is unable to provide for its security as an enclave within the former Soviet-era administrative borders from the time of Azerbaijani SSR. What is more, the current borders between NKR and Azerbaijan, which trace the existing ethno-territorial demarcation, are an important element in upholding stability in the region. The Azeri-NK ceasefire rests primarily on the established military-political balance between the two sides, in which the territories, liberated as a result of the war imposed on Armenians of Karabakh, perform a strategic function. Any political deviation that is rash and not guaranteed by a whole range of inter-state agreements ratified beforehand, will result in an immediate disturbance of the above-mentioned balance of power. This, in turn, will certainly provoke the recommencement of military actions, with catastrophic consequences for the entire region. States and organizations, which declare that it is in their own interest to uphold peace and stability in the region, should maintain this strategic balance, sensibly assessing the complexity, as well as the delicacy of the situation. They should initiate and insist on only those steps, which would without doubt contribute to the consolidation of peace, the systematic maintenance of regional security and the establishment of a tolerant atmosphere. NKR Armed Forces play a key role in maintaining stability and security in the region. The NK military works on achieving the following fundamental objectives: firstly, ensuring the security of the people of NK in face of a serious military or terrorist intervention on Azerbaijan’s part; secondly, virtually carrying out an effective peacekeeping function in the context of the unresolved Karabakh-Azerbaijan relations. The NK military, which is entirely under the control of civil authorities and plays an important role in regional security, should become a member of the international military cooperation, as well as in the sphere of military trainings. International recognition of NKR can become key to viable peace World’s historic experience demonstrates that the state is the strongest and the most ideal organization which can ensure the security of a population. One of the most important functions of the state is the protection of interests of all of its citizens and social groups, and safeguarding their security and livelihood. The people of Nagorno Karabakh created their own state and stood up for it in the war. The formal recognition of NK’s independent status by the international community is not the end in itself. It is rather a means to gain political security for the people from possible existential threats. Such recognition will open new opportunities for the consolidation of the Republic’s security and would become an important step on its way to joining the global community and taking participate fully in regional integration. It is time for the interested international organizations to invite NKR to join regional security systems. This would be an expedient move, because the internationally-accepted composition of the South Caucasus, which consists of three states only, does not take into consideration all the forces that exist in the region, and therefore cannot guarantee an inclusive long-term regional stability. Such an approach can help increase the responsibility of all the regional actors for the fate of the region, while also providing the opportunity to relevant international bodies to cooperate with the actually functioning security structures in the region. It is important to note that international community’s delay of the recognition of NK’s de jure independence and the influx of petrodollars into Azerbaijan stimulate the latter to demonstrate an even tougher rhetoric and take a more belligerent stance during the negotiations process. Moreover, the countries which have invested in Azerbaijan’s energy sector carry a great share of responsibility for maintaining peace in the region. These countries should constantly, clearly and explicitly remind Azerbaijan the drawbacks of its aggressive position. For the United States, in particular, it is important to retain a measure of control over the military infrastructure that is now being developed in Azerbaijan with American support in order to ensure security in the Caspian basin. The U.S. should hold an effective mechanism for the prevention of use of this infrastructure against the interests of NKR and Armenia. Enhanced security for NKR through initiative-driven politics In order to increase NKR security, its direct links with international actors of all levels should be enhanced. The quest for enhance security should not be viewed solely through the internationally-mediated conflict settlement. There are other opportunities for NKR to work closer with all the interested states and international bodies, even before securing international recognition. And the Armenia factor should not be considered as the main reason for NKR’s isolation from key political processes in the region and the world. Times change, and our region is also undergoing radical changes. New challenges and opportunities come up, and it is necessary to make sense of them, pursuing initiative-driven politics. The NKR can and should bring its own initiatives to the international arena. In such a case, the positions of Armenia and the Diaspora would only be facilitated. A wait-and-see attitude is not only harmful, but it is also dangerous. In the current world, relying on the sole hope of the military is not enough to guarantee security and a fast-paced development of the state. The problems of national security are not limited to the military sphere, but also include almost all the aspects of the nation’s life, and are closely interconnected and interdependent. NKR’s national security can and should be ensured at various levels: a security system for NK itself, officially documented guarantees from Armenia, which would be included in the text of a future peace agreement with Azerbaijan, as well as international guarantees, including NKR’s possible membership for NKR in regional and sub-regional security systems. NKR should conceptualize its security priorities If all the other forms or levels of NKR’s security guarantees depend upon the results of future bilateral and multilateral negotiations, there are, nevertheless, no objective limits that can be set to adding the missing elements of its own national security system, its development and bringing into order. To date, NKR is still missing an important element in its security system - a National Security System concept. This document usually includes all the officially adopted positions regarding the goals and the national strategy in the spheres of provision of security on the level of individual, society, and state from external and internal threats of political, economic, social, military, ecological, and informational, or of any other nature, with the consideration of the existing resources and capabilities. Armenia’s adoption of its own Concept of National Security brought about the necessary preconditions for the formulation and the adoption of such a document by NKR as well. Obviously, the concepts of national security of both Armenian states should be interrelated and should mutually complement each other. For a democratic entity the security of the state and the society is an important function in providing freedom and security to an individual. As Nikolai Berdyaev said, ethically, we should strive to achieve a way of life, in which the “individual,” the “social” and the “state” interact and limit each other, guaranteeing maximum freedom to creative spiritual life. In modern political science there are concepts such as “minimal” and “democratic” stability. The former of the terms means a mere absence of civil warfare or of other forms of overt internal conflict. Such stability, in other words – internal security, can be achieved through authoritarian means. On the other hand, “democratic” stability relates to the ability of democratic structures to swiftly react to the changing social demands. In this case, stability is a function of democracy, which includes participation of citizens in state governance through civil society institutions. NKR’s future National Security concept should stress the “democratic” nature of its stability. MASIS MAYILIAN Mr. Mayilian is an independent expert on foreign policy and security issues and was the main challenged in NKR presidential elections in July 2007. Prior to that he served as NKR’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2001 to 2007; from 2004 to 2007 he was also a member of the information security task force of the NKR Security Council.

• KARABAKH’S INTERNATIONAL RECOGNITION AS MEANS TO ACHIEVE POLITICAL SECURITY

  STEPANAKERT - Ensuring the security of the people of Nagorno Karabakh (NK) is the central issue in the settlement of the conflict with Azerbaijan. The current generation of the people of Karabakh faced ...

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