Spotlight Artsakh

There is a growing view that the Eastern Partnership needs to formally move beyond its founding premise as a bridge between neighbors and to become a vehicle for significant economic integration and ultimately, perhaps, EU accession.

The upcoming Brussels Summit on the Eastern Partnership will be another challenge for Armenia as it seeks to maintain the internationally-recognized OSCE Minsk Group framework, with its inclusion of the principle of self-determination.

Russian Foreign Affairs Minister Sergey Lavrov’s recent statement regarding a step-by-step approach to resolving the Nagorno Karabakh conflict reflects Russia’s centuries-old imperial instincts of using divide-and-conquer tactics on its periphery.

The liberation of the strategic town of Shushi was a turning point in the Karabakh war, causing a dramatic shift in the military progress of Armenian forces and ultimately obstructing future Turkish-Armenian relations.

Presidential and parliamentary elections were held in Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) on March 31. While voter turnout was high (72.7%), no presidential candidate received the required majority of votes, necessitating a runoff election to take place in two weeks.

Voters will be given masks, hand sanitizer and their own pen as the vote looks set to go ahead on March 31 as originally planned.

In the face of war and turmoil, music has remained one of Artsakh’s most cherished aspects of their culture. Tradition and new influences are what keep the music alive.

Gayane Ghazaryan pieces together the stories, struggles and dreams of the people of Artsakh through a series of vignettes.

For many, it might seem that Artsakh, an unrecognized state, is an unlikely place to hold an international football tournament. But that is exactly what will happen starting June 1, when Artsakh hosts the 2019 European Football Cup of the Confederation of Independent Football Associations.

Shamakhi is an Armenian dialect that is on the verge of extinction. While many Armenians from Shamakhi feel a sense of pride in their history and dialect, for the new generation who, along with the rest of the Shamakhetsis were forced to flee their village during the Karabakh War, the dialect is simply a matter of history.