Discrediting UN platform: former Armenian minister’s anti-Azerbaijan rhetoric

By Elnur Enveroglu

At his first attempt, he approached Pashinyan's administration and wanted to restore himself from the dustbin of the archive, but when his wishes did not come true, he hid behind the clerics and began to drag Armenia into chaos.

We are talking about Vartan Oskanyan, the former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia, who has become obsolete and redundant. His collapsed political career is now being revived by radical religious organizations.

Vartan Oskanyan was one of the Armenian diplomats who worked under the leadership of Robert Kocharyan and his name was mentioned in corruption. After handing over the post in 2008, Oskanyan, who retreated to a quiet corner and tried to wipe himself off the memories, has been eager to shine again since the Pashinyan administration kicked him away. Although Oskanyan revolved around Pashinyan, the pro-Western prime minister was not interested in him anymore, and thus he had to go to the pages of history.

However, joining those who want to revive the dying separatist spirit in the country gave the ex-minister a new chance.

The non-governmental organisation Christian Solidarity International, known for its religious radicalism and Azerbaijanophobic position, abused the platform of the UN Human Rights Council and held another anti-Azerbaijani event. At the event, Vartan Oskanian made a speech questioning the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan, the old and sick rituals of Armenian separatists.

The abuse of the UN platform by elements that promote religious radicalism and nationalism and oppose peace in the region was another act of shame and disregard for international law.

Oskanyan's speech, turning the UN tribune into a child's toy, is a blow to the image of the international organisation and international law in the truest sense of the word. In addition, representing Armenia and making statements outside the decisions of the Armenian government also means ignoring the direct influence of Yerevan. It means that Oskanyan is so gone astray that he no longer considers the leadership in his country, or the issue is not as we see and imagine...

The issue of Armenians who voluntarily moved from Garabagh to Yerevan has been repeatedly emphasised in the speeches of Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan: "The Azerbaijani army did not cause any danger to the peaceful Armenian population that came from Garabagh to Yerevan." I wonder what "ethnic cleansing" policy Oskanyan is talking about. Maybe we should go back to the 1990s or list the Azerbaijanis expelled from Yerevan and the historical and cultural monuments that were destroyed since the end of the 1980s?

How good that you can take a platform like the UN and say whatever you want! But how is it that you see the UN, whose resolutions you have ignored for 30 years, as a refuge for you today? That is, you enjoy more than licking the bowl you once spat on.

Since Vartan Oskanyan could not restore his lost reputation and collapsed political career, and did not dare speak publicly, he found the last opportunity to hide behind non-political religious figures like Bagrat Galstanyan. Will Okanyan grant a new world to the Armenians who refused to live under the flag of Azerbaijan and left Garabagh to live in Yerevan as they found there paradise?

Boycotting Azerbaijan at the Paris Olympic Games and defaming Azerbaijan's name can only be a product of radical thinking. Since Vartan Oskanyan could not choose a normal path for himself, today he is trying to resume his faded career among radical religious trends.