On September 27, 2020, Azerbaijan attacked civilian populations of Armenia and Artsakh. Recep Erdoğan of Turkey reacted by calling “Armenia the biggest threat to peace in the region”. Please, look at the numbers below and decide for yourself.
| Armenia | Azerbaijan | Turkey | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 3 Million | 10 Million | 82 Million |
| Leader | Nikol Pashinyan since 2018 | Ilham Aliyev since 2003 (after father) | Recep Erdoğan since 2003 |
| GDP | 12 Billion $ | 47 Billion $ | 771 Billion $ |
| Military Budget | 0.6 Billion $ | 1.7 Billion $ | 18 Billion $ |
| Religion | 94% ✝️ | 97% ☪️, 3% ✝️ | 98% ☪️ |
| Global Education Rank | # 60 | # 64 | # 92 |
| Press Freedom Index | # 61 | # 168 | # 154 |
| General Freedoms | 53% | 10% | 32% |
Armenia looks friendlier in every single aspect. The lack of support for Armenia is increasingly disappointing. A century ago, the Ottoman Empire committed the genocide of Armenian, Greek and other Christian minorities in Anatolia. Until now, many countries haven’t recognized those war crimes, even though it’s an absolute historical fact.
By now, Turks have occupied Northern Cyprus, expanded their naval presence in the Mediterranean and attacked civilian populations in Artsakh. The only reason Artsakh even wants independence from Azerbaijan - is to avoid ethnic prosecution, like in the 1990s. What’s the point of UN, NATO and other peacekeeping organizations if they can’t even publicly express support for the apparent victims?
I deliberately avoided this topic in 2020. It was a challenging year for many of us, but today’s retaliation by Azeris didn’t leave me a choice. I am in Yerevan, Armenia myself. I don’t plan to leave, but don’t want to join the army either. I am proud to have intelligent Azeri friends who have nothing to do with Alievs political agenda, let’s help others see the full picture.