Program
12.00 – Opening words, Tarja Väyrynen (Professor, Research Director, TAPRI)
12.05 – Introductory speeches by Armenian and Azerbaijani activists
12.25 – Discussions moderated by Vadim Romashov (Doctoral Researcher, TAPRI)
13.25 – Closing words, Tarja Väyrynen
Abstract
On 27 September, the war in Karabakh erupted again, the fiercest escalation of violence since the early 1990s. It has called almost 150 lives of civilians and several thousands of lives of those people who have participated in the military operations. A lot more people have been seriously injured. Also, the civil infrastructure has been severely damaged. On 10 November, the political leaders of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia signed an agreement that stopped the hostilities and provided grounds for deployment of Russian peacekeepers in the region. The agreement also stipulates the timeframe for withdrawal of Armenian forces from most territories of the conflict zone. At the same time, concrete security guarantees and practical arrangement for the return and co-living of people who were forced to flee the region at different periods of the violent conflict remain unclear.
Together with irreparable losses of human lives and aggravating economic conditions this war has brought grief and suffering to Armenian and Azerbaijani families. The gap between the two societies, which dozens of different peacebuilding initiatives have attempted to bridge for a quarter of century, has widened even more. The memories of past everydayness when Armenians and Azerbaijanis lived side by side without overt violence despite various political challenges seem to fade away. Are there any prospects for reviving good memories of the shared past? What is happening to all those different peace initiatives that have been previously launched in the region? Is it still possible to “prepare” Armenian and Azerbaijani societies for peace? Do they hear and listen to the voices for and of peace? Is there any chance for living together again after the two wars? These and many other urgent issues of the day will be discussed at the online roundtable with young Armenian and Azerbaijani peace activists.
Join Zoom Meeting
https://tuni.zoom.us/j/61819008742?pwd=bXovVUgzOEJSc3pJVzlyZVdnMkhKdz09
Meeting ID: 618 1900 8742
For further information and for receiving the passcode of the Zoom meeting, contact Vadim Romashov at vadim.romashov@tuni.fi
Photo: Marcin Konsek / Wikimedia Commons /