JAMES W. CARDEN: THIS IS NOT PEACE: ARMENIA WILL BECOME ANOTHER SYRIA
Arthur Khachikian, Stanford University PhD Graduate in Political Science, USA, discussed the agreement signed in Washington on August 8, and concerns about Armenia’s security with James W. Carden, editor and columnist at The American Conservative, former U.S. State Department adviser, and a senior advisor to the American Committee on the US-Russia Accord (ACURA)
When asked whether the deal signed in Washington means that the United States guarantees peace for Armenia, Carden replied: “No, the United States does not provide any guarantees.”
“I would be very concerned if I were Armenian. I look at Trump, I look at this deal, I look at the balance of power in this region and the balance of political power here in Washington, and I see a green light for Azerbaijan to do whatever they want with Armenia. I see this as a very serious security problem for Armenia. If people believe that this will bring Armenia into the American orbit, open up markets, and be a transformative event for Armenian society, I think it would be useful for them to go back to the 1990s and look at the experience that the Russians had. The Russian elite had the same promises and expectations at the end of the Cold War. This neoliberal experiment did not end very well for Russia,” Carden noted.
The expert recalled the historical experience of how the United States failed to meet expectations in Hungary, Iraq, Georgia, and Ukraine.
“We did this to the Hungarians in 1956. The Hungarians thought we would come to their aid against the Soviets, but we did not. We did this to the Kurds in Iraq after the first war, when they took up arms, thinking we were going to support their uprising against Saddam Hussein, but we did nothing. We did the same thing to the Georgians in 2008, when Saakashvili believed what he was told by neoconservatives on Capitol Hill, such as John McCain. He thought it would be a good idea to open fire on Russian peacekeepers in South Ossetia. It didn’t turn out very well for them. We did it in Ukraine in 2013-2014. And again, they took to the streets, Western-oriented liberal students, and made a deal with the devil in the form of far-right nationalist neo-Nazi forces. They overthrew the Ukrainian government. It didn’t turn out very well for them. So, I would be very cautious if I were Armenian before I believed Washington’s promises,” said James Carden.
