Journal on World Affairs, UCLAMartin Makaryan is an undergraduate at UCLA majoring in Political Science and minoring in Global Studies, class of 2022. Having previously interned with the California State Assembly and the Armenian National Committee of America, he is interested in foreign policy and aspires to join the U.S. foreign service after pursuing a graduate degree in international affairs. In fall 2021, he will begin an internship with LA Mayor's Office for International Affairs.
The U.S. government must view this illegal attack not through the prism of the decades-old Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh, but as a clear and explicit challenge against the sovereignty of the Armenian Republic and against the rules-based world order.
As deterrence and punitive measures have proven to be ineffective, incentivizing Putin to pivot from his use of force and assertive policies must be a priority for Western policymakers.
As the recalled French Ambassador noted, “every crisis is an opportunity.”
Given the centrality of the state in people’s lives in both countries, the reset of relations must come from the top. Regime change in both countries is indispensable for the real steps to peace and final settlement of the conflict to be taken.
Ukraine’s admission into the transatlantic military alliance is a delicate issue which requires careful consideration of geopolitical factors and pragmatism by Western policymakers.
Journal on World Affairs, UCLA