Macron's friendship with Dashnaks ruins France's chances of mediation in S. Caucasus

Once claiming to be dedicated to the impartial stance of a mediator in the South Caucasus as part of the de facto inactive OSCE Minsk Group, today Paris is loud and clear about which team it plays on.

From provocative statements to adopting anti-Azerbaijani resolutions, France’s failure to remain neutral, not only hinders the Azerbaijani-Armenian negotiation process but also impugns the country’s mediating role in the peace-building process. 

French President Emmanuel Macron’s recent meeting with Armenian nationalists, in which he expressed his “commitment to Nagorno Karabakh and Armenia as a whole,” is another manifestation of the pro-Armenian sentiments in Paris.

“I will continue to take action, even if I am almost the only one in the international community with this agenda,” Macron said in Marseilles on June 28.

Here, for once, the French president speaks the truth: he is indeed almost the only one with this agenda, which speaks volumes of the support Azerbaijan has for its position in Karabakh in international law. 

The French president has gone so far down the rabbit hole of being a tool in the arms of Armenian lobbyists that he resorts to reporting to Dashnaktsutyun's party member (the nationalist party Armenian Revolutionary Federation), Coordinating Council of Armenian Organisations in France (CCAF) co-chairman Mourad Papazian.

During the occupation of Karabakh, Papazian was frequently mentioned in the media for his activities on the territory of Azerbaijan, his support to separatist-terrorist groups and his criminal and destructive provocations.

Bear in mind that Papazian, whom Macron holds so highly, is the same nationalist, declared an undesirable person in Armenia and banned from entry into the country.

In fact, although one of the leaders of the diaspora in France, Papazian has a criminal past and is not someone with extraordinary power and capabilities.

Macron’s sudden devotion to the bandit is nothing short of another attempt to please the half million Armenians in France, who financed his election campaign, playing an important role in the outcome of the presidential elections.

This is what lies behind the curtains of Macron’s commitment to the Armenian diaspora.

During the meeting in Marseilles, Macron also stated that he will continue to put more pressure on Azerbaijani President Aliyev than Pashinyan himself has.

A simple contrast of the French streets havocked in perpetual rallies, the frequent slaps the French leader endures and President Aliyev, who has gained the great trust of the Azerbaijani people, speaks volumes that the so-called pressure never resulted in anything.

It is clear from Macron's logic that President Ilham Aliyev consistently defended and protected Azerbaijan's national interests in the international political arena and did not accept any pressure. Macron also admits that he does not have power over Aliyev and is helpless against him.

In particular, at the five-sided meeting in Chisinau, which was held within the framework of the second summit of the European Political Community with the participation of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, EU Council President Charles Michel, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and President Emmanuel Macron, French leader once again attempted to seize the initiative and circulate a statement on behalf of all participants in the summit.

Here too, Aliyev’s persistence and toughness forced Macron to abandon this venture. Returning to Paris, Macron nevertheless circulated this statement, which carried little effect after.

Nevertheless, several media outlets affiliated with the Armenian lobby in France claimed that immediately after returning from Chisinau, Macron contacted Papazian to report on his pledges of Armenia’s interests back in Moldova.

While Scholtz and Michel, and even Pashinyan behaved in a balanced manner at the Chisinau meeting, Macron did not hold back, showing how cheap the policy of official Paris is in the person of the French president.

Prior to the Chisinau meeting, Macron seemed to stay in line due to the lack of meetings on the Armenian-Azerbaijani track for quite a long period after the EU summit in Prague.

Macron, who organised the EU mission to Armenia, behaved as if he was serving the strengthening of peace in the region and advertised himself as a person who contributed to the security of Armenia. But the subsequent course of events showed that Macron's claims and efforts are nothing but empty air. On the contrary, this step led to the further weakening of Armenia, the country became a training ground for various regional participants and entered the path of Syrianisation.

France’s colonial history, outright Islamophobia, as well as the constant rallies, political chaos and violence against civil society and media representatives during Macron’s rule suggest of the president’s Napoleon Bonaparte complex.