Nagorno-Karabagh: Military Balance Between Armenia & Azerbaijan

[Spetsnaz]

Re: Nagorno-Karabagh: Military Balance Between Armenia & Azerbaijan

It's not confirmed. Anyway, there was a Russian "base" (actually a radar station) at this same location until a few years ago and it did not change anything in terms of Russian relations w/ Armenia vis-a-vis Azerbaijan. Also to add that the radar station is exclusive for usage by Russia and is meant for long range missile detection. It is not connected to Azerbaijan's air defense grid.

That said, maybe Armenia can offer to host this same type of radar station on its soil if it covers the appropriate range that Russia wants by placing it in Azerbaijan.

I doubt that Russia will deploy this kind of radar stations in Armenia, because we are close to Turkey (Nato) and it could be easily targeted.

[burjuin]

Re: Nagorno-Karabagh: Military Balance Between Armenia & Azerbaijan

http://armenpress.am/eng/news/815654/v-ao-nachalsya-noviyiy-etap-armeiyskoiy-uchebiy.html

[Mher]

Re: Nagorno-Karabagh: Military Balance Between Armenia & Azerbaijan

This railway can help in regards of military and moving of equipment.why would Russia appose it tho?

Armenia PM: We’ll construct Iran-Armenia railway despite Russia’s stance
[ 19 August 2015 11:42 ]

“We also have our own interests”

Baku. Turbet Baghirova – APA. Of course, the construction of Iran-Armenia railway may not be in the interests of our neighbors, but we must still construct it, Armenia’s PM Hovik Abrahamyan told Armenian News –NEWS.am, touching on the perspectives of Iran-Armenia railway and Russia’s stance over that issue.

In his words, Armenia and Russia are strategic allies and members of the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU). “But we also have our own interests - the interests of our people and homeland – and I’m ready to discuss the issue with them as a partner,” Abrahamyan said.

Iran-Armenia railway has a very important strategic significance for Armenia and its economy, the PM said. “And we’ll do that, regardless of whether it offends anyone or is not in their interests. The fact is that the successful completion of the construction will contribute to the economic activation and development of business in our country,” Abrahamyan said.

Armenia has no rail access to Russia at the moment. The railway going from Yerevan to Tbilisi to Sochi is cut off in Abkhazia and has been since the 92-93 Abkhazia-Georgia war. Reopening of the Abkhazia railway can be the biggest savior of the Armenian economy. Practically everything about Armenia would change if that railway ever opened. But until that day, Armenia and Iran being reconnected by railway does no good for Russia, as it only drive Armenia away from its sphere of influence.

http://forum.hyeclub.com/showthread.php/20446-North-South-Highway-Iran-Armenia-Railway

With that said, that's bullxxxx Azerbaijani news, Russia has never made statements opposing the Iran-Armenia Railway, and the company that has rights to its construction is a Russian company.

[Haykakan]

Re: Nagorno-Karabagh: Military Balance Between Armenia & Azerbaijan

Actually Mher there have been Russian officials who called the railway a bad idea, inefficient, too costly...This is one area where the interests of Armenia and Russia diverge although this may change if the Georgian link is reopened. Besides the Turkish blockades, the bad blood between Georgia and Russia is our biggest economic problem. The Georgian problem is a product of western interference ie,Shakasville. If the railway between Armenia and Iran is built there will be another new factor to consider. This would make Georgia even more important as goods from the gulf can be transported to the black sea. This would tie the economies of many nations togather. Russia may not mind it if Georgia was under its influence (might actually benefit from and ecourage it) but the hostile present day relations mean Russia is very much opposed to it for now. This is a great example of how western actions have hurt our interests and the dim witted or bought off dushes blame Russia as usual.

[Armynia]

Re: Nagorno-Karabagh: Military Balance Between Armenia & Azerbaijan

Armenia has no rail access to Russia at the moment. The railway going from Yerevan to Tbilisi to Sochi is cut off in Abkhazia and has been since the 92-93 Abkhazia-Georgia war. Reopening of the Abkhazia railway can be the biggest savior of the Armenian economy. Practically everything about Armenia would change if that railway ever opened. But until that day, Armenia and Iran being reconnected by railway does no good for Russia, as it only drive Armenia away from its sphere of influence.

http://forum.hyeclub.com/showthread.php/20446-North-South-Highway-Iran-Armenia-Railway

With that said, that's bullxxxx Azerbaijani news, Russia has never made statements opposing the Iran-Armenia Railway, and the company that has rights to its construction is a Russian company.

Well Said !

[Spetsnaz]

Re: Nagorno-Karabagh: Military Balance Between Armenia & Azerbaijan

Մարտական հերթապահության կանոնների խախտման պատճառով արձակված կրակահերթից մահացել է զինծառայող
Օգոստոս 19, 2015

Օգոստոսի 18-ին՝ ժամը 23:40-ի սահմաններում, ՀՀ ՊՆ զորամասերից մեկի մարտական հենակետում մարտական հերթապահություն կրելու կանոնները խախտելու հետևանքով արձակված կրակահերթի պատճառով ստացած հրազենային վնասվածքներից տեղում մահացել է նույն զորամասի պայմանագրային զինծառայող, 1990 թ. ծնված Աշոտ Հովհաննիսյանը: Այս մասին հայտնում է ՀՀ քննչական կոմիտեի կայքը:

Դեպքի առթիվ ՀՀ ՔԿ զինվորական քննչական գլխավոր վարչությունում հարուցվել է քրեական գործ՝ ՀՀ քրեական օրենսգրքի 365-րդ հոդվածի 3-րդ մասով (մարտական հերթապահություն կամ մարտական ծառայություն կրելու կանոնները խախտելը՝ որն առաջացրել է ծանր հետևանքներ)։

Նախաքննության արդյունքների մասին տեղեկություն կտրամադրվի լրացուցիչ։

http://razm.info/69545

[armnuke]

Re: Nagorno-Karabagh: Military Balance Between Armenia & Azerbaijan

Armenia has no rail access to Russia at the moment. The railway going from Yerevan to Tbilisi to Sochi is cut off in Abkhazia and has been since the 92-93 Abkhazia-Georgia war. Reopening of the Abkhazia railway can be the biggest savior of the Armenian economy. Practically everything about Armenia would change if that railway ever opened. But until that day, Armenia and Iran being reconnected by railway does no good for Russia, as it only drive Armenia away from its sphere of influence.

http://forum.hyeclub.com/showthread.php/20446-North-South-Highway-Iran-Armenia-Railway

With that said, that's bullxxxx Azerbaijani news, Russia has never made statements opposing the Iran-Armenia Railway, and the company that has rights to its construction is a Russian company.

Armenia PM: We’ll construct Iran-Armenia railway despite anyone’s interests

YEREVAN. - Of course, the construction of Iran-Armenia railway may not be in the interests of our neighbors, but we must [still] construct it, Armenia’s PM Hovik Abrahamyan told Armenian News – NEWS.am, touching on the perspectives of Iran-Armenia railway and Russia’s stance over that issue. In his words, Armenia and Russia are strategic allies and members of the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU). “But we also have our own interests - the interests of our people and homeland – and I’m ready to discuss the issue with them as a partner,” Abrahamyan said. Iran-Armenia railway has a very important strategic significance for Armenia and its economy, the PM said. “And we’ll do that, regardless of whether it offends anyone or is not in their interests. The fact is that the successful completion of the construction will contribute to the economic activation and development of business in our country,” Abrahamyan said. - See more at: http://news.am/eng/news/282042.html#....ikd5lBIH.dpuf

[Haykakan]

Re: Nagorno-Karabagh: Military Balance Between Armenia & Azerbaijan

RUSSIA'S CONTEST WITH THE WEST HEATS UP IN THE CAUCASUS

Stratfor
Aug 19 2015

Geopolitical Diary
August 19, 2015

Just as signs indicate that the conflict in Ukraine is escalating, the
standoff between Russia and the West also appears to be intensifying
farther east in the former Soviet periphery. On Tuesday, Georgian
Defense Minister Tina Khidasheli met with U.S. Secretary of Defense
Ashton Carter at the Pentagon, ahead of the inauguration of a new NATO
training center in Georgia before the end of August. The day before
the meeting, reports emerged that Russia is planning on opening a new
military radar station in Azerbaijan in 2017. Though these reports
are unconfirmed and may not be entirely reliable, coupled with the
opening of a NATO training center, they suggest the Caucasus could
soon experience some important changes.

The Southern Caucasus region -- comprising the states of Georgia,
Armenia and Azerbaijan -- is no stranger to the standoff between Moscow
and the West. Indeed, it was the Russo-Georgian War of August 2008 that
marked Russia's resurgence as a regional power and exposed the West's
unwillingness to defend a country that was formally aligned with both
the European Union and NATO. After the war, Russia was able to use
divisions within NATO and the U.S. preoccupation with the wars in Iraq
and Afghanistan to re-establish influence throughout much of the former
Soviet periphery, from Central and Eastern Europe to Central Asia.

What is a Geopolitical Diary?

This was particularly true in the Caucasus, where Russia used the war
with Georgia as a means to formalize and strengthen its military and
political influence in the breakaway territories of Abkhazia and South
Ossetia. Russia also shored up its military presence in Armenia and
gained an even stronger economic and political position there. The
one weak spot for Russia was Azerbaijan, which instead of aligning
with Moscow chose to use its wealth of energy resources and strategic
location to gain concessions from several regional powers, including
Russia, Turkey and the West. But Russia's military presence in both
Georgia and Armenia effectively served as a check against Azerbaijan,
and Baku was well aware that Moscow was the dominant external power
in the region.

However, the West would not give Russia a free hand to keep expanding
its influence in the former Soviet periphery. In the Euromaidan
uprising in Ukraine, the United States and European Union supported
the removal of a pro-Russian government in Kiev in favor of one that
was oriented toward the West. And Western powers made clear that
their support would not be limited to Ukraine: Particularly after
Russia annexed Crimea and opted to support a separatist rebellion
in eastern Ukraine, the West began to build up militarily in Central
and Eastern Europe and expand security cooperation with several other
countries in the former Soviet periphery.

This expansion has been most obvious in Ukraine, but it has not ended
there. Georgian troops have participated in significantly more joint
military exercises with NATO and U.S. forces since the Ukraine conflict
began. And although Georgia has not been granted the NATO membership
it has so actively sought, the alliance will open a military training
center in the country during a visit from NATO Secretary-General Jens
Stoltenberg at the end of August. The opening of the center is bound
to be as unpalatable to Russia as it is a welcome vindication for
Georgia, a country that felt abandoned by the alliance during its
own war with Russia just seven years ago.

Moscow will be particularly displeased because Russia's once-dominant
position in the Caucasus has been tested during the Ukraine crisis.

Since the start of the fighting in Ukraine, the territorial conflict
between Armenia and Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh -- which had been
relatively dormant for the past two decades -- has intensified. This is
probably not a coincidence; Russia's ability to arbitrate and shape the
conflict to its liking has been strained. Normally, Russia's military
presence in Armenia and strong position in the Caucasus overall
was enough to maintain the peace. However, the Europeans have been
courting Azerbaijan more ardently as an alternative energy supplier,
allowing Azerbaijan to gain leverage even as Russia is losing economic
and political standing. This could explain why Azerbaijan has, over
the past year, become much more aggressive in testing the status quo
on the line of contact with the Armenians and why Yerevan and its
backers in Moscow have done relatively little to respond.

Normally, we would expect Russia to lambast Azerbaijan for its
aggressive actions and boost support for its ally, Armenia, but it has
done neither. Instead, Russia has called on Armenia and Azerbaijan
to maintain a dialogue over Nagorno-Karabak, and Russian officials
have said Moscow will maintain weapons supplies to both countries. At
the same time, Russia has increased its security cooperation with
Azerbaijan; Russian artillery ships paid a friendly visit to the Baku
port from Aug. 13-16, and defense officials from Russia and Azerbaijan
have held numerous bilateral meetings in recent months.

Given this context, an Aug. 17 report from TV Zvezda claiming that
Russia plans to deploy a Voronezh-DM early warning radar in Azerbaijan
in 2017 caught our attention. There are numerous reasons to seriously
question this report; neither Russian nor Azerbaijani officials have
confirmed it. Moreover, Zvezda, a radio and television station operated
by the Russian Ministry of Defense, has been known to broadcast Russian
propaganda and occasional disinformation. In fact, the Russians have
little practical need for a military radar station in Azerbaijan since
they have built up other early warning assets covering the Caucasus
region since they lost the use of Azerbaijan's Gabala station in 2012.

This is not to say that the radar deployment or other forms of military
cooperation between Moscow and Baku are out of the question.

The situation in the Caucasus is fluid and complex. The recent
developments in the Caucasus raise more questions than answers, but
they are undoubtedly meaningful components in the evolution of the
broader standoff between Russia and the West.

https://www.stratfor.com/geopolitical-diary/russias-contest-west-heats-caucasus

[armnuke]

Re: Nagorno-Karabagh: Military Balance Between Armenia & Azerbaijan

Are any of you guys here on twitter?

[Spetsnaz]

Re: Nagorno-Karabagh: Military Balance Between Armenia & Azerbaijan

70 Armenian fighters join Syrian Kurds in war on ISIS
July 3, 2015

The Armenian fighter Barkhodan speaking to ARA News in Sere Kaniye, northeastern Syria
Read More

16 ISIS militants tested positive with AIDS in Syria’s Deiz ez-Zor Most of Syria victims are civilians, all armed factions blamed for increasing death tolls Reasons for failure of establishing a safe zone north Syria Turkey-ISIS alliance uncovered Why would ISIS block private internet in Raqqa? Hasakah: ISIS under Kurdish siege Second German killed in Syria fighting against ISIS

Sere Kaniye, Syria – Dozens of fighters from different nationalities have joined the ranks of the Kurdish forces in Syria and Iraq in order to combat militants of the Islamic State (IS/ISIS).

An Armenian fighter in the ranks of the Kurdish forces of the People’s Protection Units (YPG), nicknamed Barkhodan, came to Syria nearly two years ago and joint the fight against ISIS.

“I am 55 years old, I came to Syria along with 70 Armenian young men, and we joined the ranks of the YPG more than two years ago,” he told ARA News, pointing out that they have been deployed on various positions at battle fronts in accordance with their military expertise.

“We are fighting here in defense of the Armenian people from the risk of IS extremists, we do not differentiate between Arabs, Kurds, Christians and Muslims,” he said.

“The main reason for many foreign fighters to be here (northern Syria) is the necessity to eliminate the enemies of humanity (in reference to ISIS militants).”

“ISIS is killing women and children. What happened in Kobane several days ago when they killed hundreds of innocent people is the biggest motivation for me to fight those barbarians, despite my old age,” Barkhodan told ARA News.

“When we fight alongside the YPG forces, this actually raises the overall morale among Kurds in the war on terrorism,” he added.

In Syria, hundreds of foreign members of the YPG have formed what is known as “Lions of Rojava” (Lions of Syrian Kurdistan). They combat ISIS in several areas in Syria’s Kurdish region alongside Kurdish forces.

Recently, foreign fighters of YPG formed a battalion under the banner “World Freedom” in Sere Kaniye (Ras al-Ain), northeastern Syria, which includes dozens of fighters who were distributed at the anti-ISIS fighting fronts after having completed military training in YPG-held camps.

http://aranews.net/2015/07/70-armenian-fighters-join-syrian-kurds-in-war-on-isis/