Not Accidental: The Enemy, Unlike Us, is Preparing for a New War - Avetik Chalabyan

The events of the past few days, especially the brutal battles on November 16 in the eastern Sisian region, were a cold shower for our society, which, a year after the bloody war in Artsakh, hoped that relative peace had finally been established within our borders, allowing a return to normal life. This was mentioned by public and political figure Avetik Chalabyan on his Facebook page.

He particularly noted: “One could analyze the deep-rooted causes of the events, but overall it comes down to a few simple factors that have not changed significantly over the past year: a) Turkey and Azerbaijan, having unexpectedly achieved great success in the Artsakh war, are trying to develop it at all costs and seize as much as possible from the oppressed and weakened Armenia; b) Armenia's main strategic partner, Russia, is simultaneously a partner of Turkey and Azerbaijan and will avoid openly taking sides in this conflict for the sake of its own state and internal group interests; c) Remaining powers, perhaps with the exception of Iran, are not ready to get directly involved in the Armenian-Turkish conflict, limiting themselves to expressing 'concern,' with any possible support being delayed and factually useless; d) The current Armenian government, having failed the Artsakh war, continues to fail in defending Syunik, making it increasingly vulnerable to enemy advances through its actions and inaction.

As a result of all this, over the past few months, the security situation in Syunik has sharply deteriorated, due to the enemy's creeping expansion and the continuous concessions of the Armenian government. In the conditions where the line of contact with the enemy is practically unprotected from Soghk to Meghri, instead of fortifying the front line, boosting military morale, or strengthening military units, the government is busy creating parks for dogs in downtown Yerevan, changing sidewalk tiles, and waging endless demoralizing propaganda about peace.

It is not accidental that the enemy, unlike us, is preparing for a new war, conducting military exercises, building fortifications, and openly propagating hatred against Armenians, while seizing every opportunity to advance at possible points and consolidate its positions (both territorial and negotiating), ultimately imposing utterly unacceptable concessions on us.

Against this backdrop, the military operations of November 16 were an unexpected surprise for everyone. The enemy, which seemed already accustomed to advancing without resistance and seizing Armenian positions effortlessly, faced stubborn resistance from our army in the Tsitsernakar area and suffered significant losses—resulting in our armed forces being able to halt their attack on the second line. Although our losses were also considerable, this bloody incident leads to a simple conclusion: the creeping expansion of the enemy can only be halted by force, countering their impudence and audacity with the unified fist of Armenia.

Today, more than ever, we must realize that the government’s preaching of 'peace' and its passive stance towards the enemy will lead to continuous losses until we lose our entire country and are forced to flee from there—to not live under the yoke of the Turk again. If we desire to achieve true and dignified peace, we need to reclaim that right, regain respect for ourselves; the enemy must again fear the strength of the Armenian people. Our army showed on November 16 that this is possible—our soldiers fell but did not retreat, they fiercely defeated the enemy in battle, successfully reclaiming our right to live with dignity and peace in the area they defended. In the face of their heroism and indelible memory, we must shake off this defeatist lethargy and unite as a nation for the defense of our country.

This will be either through enlisting in the army or territorial defense forces, strengthening our defensive lines, creating new military equipment, caring for the injured, or any other action that will enhance our military capabilities and fighting spirit; now is the time for that. If we come together as one fist, uniting in our struggle for our natural rights—our country, our land and water, our freedom—both the enemy and allies will have to reckon with it, and they can no longer speak to us as defeated and weak. We, through the Ararat Foundation, are continuously engaged in this, without paying attention to the fake 'peace-loving' propaganda, and from today onward, inspired by the heroic deeds of our soldiers, we will do even more—both the possible and the impossible—to restore our fighting spirit, our respect, and our right to a dignified life.

You should each ask yourselves: what are you personally doing so that together we can rise from this impoverished state and deserve our land and water again, our sacred homeland—and do not hesitate to reclaim the right to live in our native land with peace and dignity through your real actions. Meanwhile, I bow my head in front of our heroic martyrs—glory to them and eternal remembrance.