Book on the activities of the Armenian diaspora in the Middle East presented in Baku

The presentation of the book “The Armenian Diaspora in the Middle East: historical, religious, political, cultural, media, educational and social activities” has taken place.

According to The Daily Baku, the book authored by Lala Khalilzadeh, an expert at the Center of Analysis of International Relations, analyzes the historical context, key political, social and cultural areas of activity, spheres of influence and capabilities of the Armenian diaspora in five Middle Eastern countries where the Armenian community is most widely represented: Lebanon, Palestine, Syria, Egypt and Jordan.

Chairman of the Board of the Center of Analysis of International Relations, Farid Shafiyev, stated that Azerbaijan is seeking to achieve peace with Armenia.

“Elections, a referendum and border delimitation in Armenia are currently on the agenda within the peace process. There are forces in Armenia opposing Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. The Armenian diaspora has significant influence on the country’s internal affairs. These elections are important and decisive for Armenia,” he said.

Member of the Board of the Center, Javid Valiyev, noted that the Armenian diaspora has been useful for third parties.

“During the Cold War, when the Armenian diaspora gained the greatest influence, they expanded their relations with both the United States and the Soviet Union. This created favorable conditions for them in regional politics. When third powers withdrew, they were left face to face with other countries,” he said.

According to him, the Armenian diaspora opposes the normalization of relations between Azerbaijan and Armenia, as this eliminates both their leverage and that of third parties.

The author of the book, L. Khalilzadeh, noted that sources in Arabic, Turkish, English, Russian, Armenian, German and French were used in the research.

“The book also examines the recent processes taking place in the Middle East and their impact on the Armenian community,” she said.

It should be noted that the book explores contemporary political and social perspectives and challenges. At the same time, short biographies of well known Armenian origin public and political figures active in the Middle East have been compiled, and their role in social and cultural life has been analyzed.

One of the key areas of the research is the media activities of the Armenian diaspora. In particular, the study analyzes books, magazines and newspapers published by representatives of Armenian communities in the aforementioned countries, as well as propaganda campaigns targeting Arabic speaking audiences during the Karabakh war and information disseminated regarding the so called “Armenian genocide.”