Israeli Arms Supply to Azerbaijan is Not Only Shameful but Also a Criminal Act, Blogger Lapshin Responds to Artsakh President

I would like to comment on the statement made by Mr. Arayik Harutyunyan, the President of the Republic of Artsakh. He said at a press conference that by supplying arms to Aliyev's regime, Israel is thus participating in the genocide of the Armenian population of the republic.

This was stated in a Facebook post by the famous blogger Alexander Lapshin.

“Two things. First, I completely agree with Arayik Harutyunyan, and as an Israeli, I consider supplying arms to Azerbaijan not only shameful but also a criminal act. Second, I want to say that the responsibility for the arms supply is not only on the Israeli authorities. For political reasons, Armenia did not have an embassy in Israel for 30 years, and no one was defending the interests of Armenians in the Jewish state. Meanwhile, Azerbaijan not only has a large diaspora in Israel, but all these years actively lobbied for its interests.”

“Where were the Armenian authorities 3-5 years ago when the agreements on supplying arms to Azerbaijan were signed? Did anyone protest? No. Did anyone try to obstruct the supply using political and diplomatic tools? No. Did anyone try to exert pressure on Israel through the active and influential Armenian diaspora in the United States? Again no.”

“What is the Armenian embassy in Israel doing today to protect the interests of Yerevan? Nothing. The ambassador was recalled on October 1, 2020, as a sign of protest against the arms supply to Azerbaijan. This was precisely 2 weeks after the opening of the Armenian embassy in Tel Aviv. The only thing the Armenian ambassador managed to do in Israel was to rent an office and buy furniture. He gave one interview to a little-known Russian-language Iton TV internet channel, which is generally not viewed by Israelis.”

“In other words, during these difficult days, the ambassador should have been fighting day and night for Armenia's interests, meeting with Israeli political and public figures, but the ambassador is in Yerevan.”

“To sum up, I would like to bring an example from Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia, where Mr. Tigran Mkrtchyan, the Armenian ambassador, is working. I am subscribed to his official Facebook, and I see that this diplomat fights for Armenia’s interests around the clock. Every day he is meeting and traveling with politicians arriving from Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia. I just took a few screenshots, wondering what the ambassador has done in just the last 3-4 days. It’s hard to believe that just one person can do all this.”

“And now the question arises: What has the embassy in Tel Aviv done for Armenia’s interests during this time? The question is rhetorical. Nothing.”

P.S. I know that someone will be offended by me now. I will survive those offenses. But the truth is more important. Israel is undoubtedly wrong, but what did you and I do to correct it? That is the question.