"Armenia is turning into a springboard for undermining the South Caucasus" Russian expert on Caliber.Az

Caliber.Az presents an interview with the head of the Russian Agency for Ethno-National Strategies, Doctor of Historical Sciences, Professor Alexander Kobrinsky.

— What do you think is the purpose of the United States increasing its military presence in Armenia? What is their main objective in the South Caucasus?

— In my view, the American policy towards Armenia will be exclusively cynical and exploitative. Their goal is clear. In the first stage, to expel Russia from Armenia as a stabilizing factor. In the subsequent stages, to turn Armenia into a base for conducting subversive and provocative activities in the South Caucasus. The objective is to create controlled chaos in the region and to penetrate neighboring countries to divide and incite conflicts among them from Armenian territory. There are no exceptions. All of this is aimed at seizing resources, blocking and controlling logistics routes from Central Asia to Europe, from India to the Mediterranean, North to South, and so on. Moreover, controlling logistics may be an even more important task than controlling resources.

— An American advisor is set to join the Armenian Ministry of Defence. What is the purpose of this?

— According to the State Department, the military attaché is supposedly going to help the Armenian Ministry of Defence reform its armed forces. In reality, I believe the military advisor will be overseeing issues related to arms procurement and transitioning the Armenian army to NATO standards. Additionally, they will function as a supervisor and controller of the actions of the Armenian military department.

— In Russia, it is believed that the West intends to turn Armenia into a second Ukraine. Are there real grounds for this?

— Yes. The West is not just intending to do this; it is already doing it. Armenia, with its new allies, is now determined to follow the well-trodden path towards anti-Russian sentiments. Perhaps as a token of gratitude to Russia for everything. When the leaders of a state betray their people and sell out to the Anglo-Saxons, they deprive their citizens of their history. And the muse Clio, as I have mentioned repeatedly, punishes both the people and the state they have created for not honouring her.

— Recently, US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs James O'Brien admitted that Washington is contributing to Armenia's distancing from Russia. Why are the Americans openly acknowledging this?

— Politics is over. The West is now run by bureaucrats who have displaced politicians. Their planning horizon is limited to their term in office at best, and realistically one or two years. Politicians think in terms of decades. For bureaucrats, the task is self-promotion; the louder they speak, the better they are remembered by their superiors, and the better their career prospects. Russophobia is in vogue now. Armenia is becoming a tool in the hands of the Americans, and the Americans, intoxicated by their impunity, are not even hiding it. Thinking they are mocking Russia, the policies of Nikol Pashinyan will ultimately harm the Armenian people themselves. By acting on the instructions of Western sponsors, Pashinyan is betraying not only his people but also their history. As A.S. Pushkin said back in 1830: “Barbarism, baseness, and ignorance do not respect the past, bowing only to the present.”

— US military presence has already been recorded in Zangezur. How likely is it that a full-fledged US military base will appear in Armenia in the future?

— I think the current goal of the US is not so much to establish a military base as it is to push Russia out of the region. They are working systematically and persistently in this direction. Russia is currently distracted by the conflict in Ukraine, which the US aims to exploit. They have already pushed Russian border guards out of Armenia’s Zvartnots Airport, allowing them to bring in anything and in any quantities. I believe it’s unnecessary to explain what they might bring with the allocated millions.

— What will happen to the Russian military base in Gyumri?

— The Russian base will be pushed out by any means necessary. It is likely that the US will pressure the French, and they will send their own military contingent to Armenia. I think the French, in revenge for Africa, will not delay this issue and will eventually appear in Armenia.