Turkish expert: Armenian church attempting to sabotage Yerevan-Baku dialogue

Analyst at Türkiye's Ankara-based Centre for Eurasian Studies (AVİM) Selenay Erva Yalcin has said that the Armenian Church openly expressed its dissatisfaction with Yerevan's dialogue with Baku. 

“The Armenian Church is constantly seeking external support to undermine the peace process, as it has failed to gain such support from the Armenian population itself,” she said, Caliber.Az reports via local media. 

The expert drew attention to the radical statements from church representatives and the involvement of religious figures in anti-government protests in Armenia.

She said that realising the impossibility of exerting pressure on the authorities through protests, the Church, together with the diaspora, has turned to seeking supporters abroad.

The expert referred to the June meeting between the Catholicos of the Armenian Church of Cilicia, Aram I, and Pope Francis in the Vatican as a recent example of this effort.

She also highlighted the situation with Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby, who was forced to announce his resignation amid accusations of failing to punish a clergyman involved in sexual abuse.

The expert reminded that Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby had frequently visited Armenia, making inappropriate attacks on Baku, which were not fitting for his position. His last visit to Yerevan took place in October 2023 while in January 2024, he received Catholicos of All Armenians Karekin II in the UK.

"Attempting to distort the realities of the South Caucasus, Welby, whose term will end on January 6, 2025, claims in Yerevan that Armenians' rights are being violated by Azerbaijan," the analyst noted.

She also recalled that in 2019, this same archbishop had installed a khachkar (Armenian cross-stone) at Canterbury Cathedral in support of spreading false narratives about the events of 1915 in the Ottoman Empire.

The AVIM analyst pointed out that the name of Justin Welby's successor as the spiritual leader of the Anglican Communion will be significant in shaping London's agenda regarding the South Caucasus. 

She also noted that Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's statements about readiness for a quick peace and normalisation of relations with neighbouring countries are in direct contradiction to Yerevan's course of aligning itself with Western countries, which are far from balanced in their approach to the South Caucasus.

The expert cited France as an example, where pro-Armenian statements are made at every opportunity, often more radical than the rhetoric of Armenia's own authorities. 

"Paris attempts to position itself as protector of Yerevan, which is evident in its actions within international organisations," she observed, emphasising that Armenia's peaceful statements do not inspire trust.

By Naila Huseynova