Political conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan is not over – Alexey Anpilogov

Russian political scientist Alexey Anpilogov spoke to Alpha News about Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s statement that the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan is politically over, but continues in its socio-psychological dimension.

“I don’t believe the political conflict is over yet. A political conflict can only be considered over if a comprehensive, genuine, binding peace treaty is signed. And that has not happened yet. Even after a peace treaty is signed, experience shows that it is not always implemented in practice. It is enough to recall, for example, the Treaty of Versailles, which ended World War I. That treaty planted the very ‘bomb’ that later exploded in Nazi Germany,” Anpilogov said.

According to the expert, many issues in bilateral relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan remain unresolved.

“The policy currently pursued by official Baku envisions the construction of a mono-national, mono-ethnic state based on Turkic-speaking Islamic models. This, in my view, is a rather narrow and flawed model, within which the rights of national minorities will inevitably be infringed. Despite the mass exodus from Nagorno-Karabakh, these people are left with enormous problems—abandoned homes, property rights, which, I believe, will be violated in every possible way. It is already clear that Azerbaijan is selective in its approach to property issues in Artsakh. This complex of humanitarian problems will inevitably develop into a political standoff, because these people haven’t gone anywhere—they are alive and they remember. They are now in Armenia and represent a political force, no matter how much Pashinyan and the current leadership try to gloss over it. Sooner or later, this array of problems will spill over into Armenia itself. This is a serious challenge, not only in foreign policy but also in domestic politics, which, it seems to me, is not yet fully recognized. Therefore, it cannot be said that the political conflict is over. Absolutely not. The political process cannot be put on hold by any statements—it is an objective reality shaped by the people themselves. This is the essence of politics. Politics is not about politicians, it is about the people,” Anpilogov concluded.