My recent articles for Eurasianet

Fighting in Karabakh Flares As Azerbaijan Marks Memorial

February 27, 2017 - 3:53pm, by Emil Sanamyan

Screenshot of a video posted by Arshak Zakaryan, a videographer who works with the Armenian Ministry of Defense, showing the portion of Haramı Düzü, or "forbidden plain," where 5 Azerbaijani soldiers died on February 25. White arrow points to the location of the bodies between the Azerbaijani (left) and Armenian (right) trenches.

At least five Azerbaijani servicemen were killed on February 25 in the worst flare-up of fighting over Nagorno Karabakh since last April. As per usual, the Armenian and Azerbaijani press services published versions of the incident at odds with one another.
The renewed violence comes as spring approaches and many fear an even more serious bout of fighting than last April's, in which more than 200 were killed, itself the worst fighting since the ceasefire was signed in 1994.

• Read more

Azerbaijan's New Vice President(s) and its House of Clans

February 23, 2017 - 1:05am, by Emil Sanamyan

A February 21 meeting of Azerbaijan's Security Council at which Azerbaijan's first vice president, first lady Mehriban Aliyeva, was introduced. (photo: president.az)

President Ilham Aliyev’s February 21 announcement that from now on his wife Mehriban Aliyeva will be the country’s first vice-president elicited a good deal of mockery, including the inevitable comparisons to the plotline of the TV series House of Cards.
But beyond the jokes, the move appears to be the result of a deadly serious tussle for power and influence within the ruling regime. While intra-government cleavages have existed since Aliyev succeeded his father in 2003, these tensions have intensified in recent years amid an economic crisis and a substantial drop in Azerbaijan’s energy revenues.

• Read more

With New Constitution, Is Karabakh Following in Azerbaijan's Footsteps?

February 18, 2017 - 11:09am, by Emil Sanamyan

President Serzh Sargsyan of Armenia and de facto president Baho Sahakyan of Nagorno Karabakh at a joint meeting in 2016. (photo: president.am) 

 

On February 20, the de facto republic of Nagorno Karabakh will hold a referendum on a new constitution that would change the form of government from semi-presidential to a fully presidential. It would also, as a result, allow incumbent president Bako Sahakyan to retain his post beyond the current limit of two five-year terms.

• Read more

Armenia: Ahead of Key Election, New Alliances Coalesce

February 6, 2017 - 7:43am, by Emil Sanamyan

 

Unusually frigid February weather aside, Armenia's politics is thawing out of its traditional winter slumber unseasonably early as it looks ahead to an April 2 election that now appears far less predictable than it had just a couple of months ago.

As in four preceding parliamentary elections, the ruling Republican Party (RPA) is the presumptive favorite. But a half dozen alliances and individual political parties are expected to offer some real competition for seats in the new National Assembly. Pre-election buzz is real, horse trading is in full swing, and even long-disappeared politicos are reemerging to seek out places for themselves in the electoral lists.
What makes this election different is the new constitutional framework that calls for transition of executive power from incumbent president Serzh Sargsyan – who completes his term a year from now – to a prime minister selected by parliamentary majority. That ups the stakes in these elections, and the buzz is all around three individual politicians.

• Read more

The Armenian Diaspora and Armenia: A New Relationship?

November 14, 2016 - 11:08am, by Emil Sanamyan

 Leading members of the Armenian Diaspora are looking to take on a greater role in how Armenia is run. In a recent full-page ad published in The New York Times, 23 Diaspora personalities from around the world appealed to their compatriots to make “a long-term commitment toward collectively advancing” Armenia.

• Read more