The Israeli state does nothing for no reason: Oleg Makarenko on the recognition of the Armenian Genocide

Oleg Makarenko, Political Scientist and Orientalist and international observer, analyzed in an interview with Alpha News the reasons behind the Israeli government’s recognition of the Armenian Genocide, and assessed the visit of Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, to Armenia and Azerbaijan.

“We need to understand that the Armenian diaspora in the United States is quite influential, very influential. Is it comparable to the Israeli one? Relatively speaking, yes. So using the American track, where the Jewish lobby would also have the Armenian lobby alongside it, would be very interesting. The Israeli state does nothing for no reason. What we’re seeing now is part of a game to make it easier for Israel to pursue its policy, whether in Lebanon, the Gaza Strip, or elsewhere. It’s another element of Israel’s larger global strategy to build the great Israeli state they dream of there. So one shouldn’t be under any illusions or say that Israel stands on the side of the Armenian people: there, they always think of their own interests first,” the expert believes.

Addressing the visit of the President of the European Commission to the South Caucasus, Makarenko noted that it is a visit of solidarity with Armenia’s course toward Europe and support for the current political course of the Armenian authorities, who, in his view, find themselves in a difficult position in the context of the country’s membership in the EAEU.

“Ursula von der Leyen’s visit to Armenia and Azerbaijan resembles the constant rotation of European politicians through Ukraine. They support political forces that might falter or face rising protest sentiment. The goal is to sustain the political course toward rapprochement with Europe. At the same time, Armenia could lose economic preferences if it leaves the economic union with Russia, Kazakhstan, and other EAEU countries, and that could prove quite painful. So Europe’s task is to sustain trust in the European choice and show Armenian society that Europe stands close by,” Alpha News’ interlocutor stressed.

According to the expert, Ursula von der Leyen also has plans regarding shifting the foreign policy orientation of the Azerbaijani elites.

“Azerbaijan is clearly not moving toward Europe. So the Europeans are trying to probe political forces in Azerbaijan, to understand how loyal they are to Europe and how ready they are to engage with Armenia within the framework of its European integration. And perhaps the most interesting task for them is trying to pull the Azerbaijani elites out of Erdogan’s tight grip. That is their main goal in the South Caucasus,” Oleg Makarenko concluded.