U.S.-backed peace deal in Caucasus entrenches ethnic cleansing, blocks refugee return, and risks escalating regional conflict
Original framing: “ANCA Capitol Hill briefing warns flawed “peace” process creates conditions for renewed genocide” — startpage news
The original framing omits the role of indigenous Armenian stewardship of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) over centuries, the historical Soviet-era redrawing of borders to favor Azerbaijan, and the marginalization of Artsakh Armenians in peace negotiations. It also ignores the ecological and cultural destruction wrought by Azerbaijan’s blockade (e.g., deforestation, erasure of Armenian heritage sites) and the complicity of international actors like the EU in funding Azerbaijani infrastructure projects that entrench occupation. The narrative lacks analysis of how corporate extractivism (e.g., Azerbaijan’s oil revenues) fuels militarization.
High structural omission detected in mainstream coverage.
The narrative is produced by Armenian-American advocacy groups (e.g., ANCA) and amplified by diaspora media, serving to mobilize U.S. political pressure against Azerbaijan’s allyship with Turkey and Israel. The framing obscures U.S. complicity in legitimizing Azerbaijan’s oil-backed regime through energy deals (e.g., Southern Gas Corridor) and ignores how Western powers instrumentalize 'peace processes' to maintain influence in the Caucasus. The dominant discourse centers U.S. exceptionalism while sidelining local agency and historical grievances.
The conflict traces back to Soviet-era administrative borders (1921) that placed Artsakh within Azerbaijan despite its 94% Armenian population. The 1988-1994 war and 2020 Second Karabakh War followed similar scripts: Azerbaijan’s military campaigns (backed by Turkey and Israel) to 'reclaim' territory, followed by ceasefires that freeze displacement. The 2020 deal’s Lachin Corridor mirrors 19th-century Russian imperial policies that used transport routes to assert control over the Caucasus.
The Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict is a microcosm of how post-Soviet geopolitics weaponizes 'peace processes' to entrench authoritarianism and displace indigenous peoples, with the U.S.