Dear International Colleagues, Friends, Members of Partner Universities Across Europe and Beyond,

While all the countries of the world are presently fighting the COVID-19 pandemic, the Azerbaijani militaries with the strong support from Turkey have launched a missile and aerial attack, on September, 27, 2020 at the entire length of the line of contact on the territory of the Republic of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh Republic) and an intense fighting has been continuing with the penetrations on the territory of Armenia destroying our civilian infrastructure and causing devastating consequences to the peaceful people in Artsakh and Armenia. Turkey, as a driver of the war, transferred thousands of terrorists mercenaries from Syria to fight against the Armenians in Artsakh. Despite mounting international concern, Turkey is explicitly demonstrating its force in the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan and cynical ignorance toward the calls from the Minsk group Co-Chairs to stop military actions.

To give a clearer idea of the significance of Artsakh to Armenia or to the entire world, imagine for a second a situation when your house is in peace and harmony, you live your life there, raise your children without troubling people around you, and your two neighbors living next to you, from time to time come to break down the door of your house, rudely intrude it, kill your children and demand that your house belongs to them. At the same time they told other neighbors that you were the first to break into their territory, kill their children, and that your house had always been theirs but you had taken over it with violence.

Such is the truth about Republic of Artsakh. Decades of living of Armenians in this land under the threat of attack of Azerbaijan with an open support of Turkey is against the human rights of the people living there who voted for their independence to correct the historical mistake of 1921 when Nagorno-Karabakh was transferred to Soviet Azerbaijan and became part of it based on the decision influenced by Stalin and group of bolsheviks which lacked legitimacy and without taking into account the interests of the ethnic Armenians. In 1991, Nagorno-Karabakh declared its independence from the Soviet Union. The war started by Azerbaijan in 1991 against Armenian population of Karabakh, ended with the victory of the Nagorno-Karabakh, and the ceasefire agreement signed in 1994 by the representatives of Republic of Armenia, the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, and the Azerbaijan Republic. However, the situation has remained tense as the Azerbaijani military attacks have been continued throughout the past three decades, with the last severe flare up in 2016, which has now turned into a large-scale war against Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia.

In recent days and nights, the artillery fire has been raining down on Republic of Artsakh’s capital of Stepanakert, the second largest city of Shushi, other small and big civic territories in Artsakh with attempts to fire an attack on the territory of Armenia.

The horrific actions of Azerbaijan and Turkey should be condemned in the strongest possible terms by all the international community representatives as these two countries may turn the conflict into a larger regional war, plunging more people in the region into an unprecedented time of peril, fear and uncertainty.

Education is one of the first things sacrificed in an emergency, but it is not merely another casualty of emergencies. It has the potential to be a very powerful tool for building sustainable peace and preventing the violence.

In our opinion, researchers, academics and policymakers all over the world can stand up and condemn the actions of Azerbaijan and Turkey against the peaceful population in Republic of Artsakh, and we are assured that together with all of you, we can promote to shared different strains of strong evidence, all pointing to one thing: the initial role of higher education is to enhance and solidify the peacebuilding process. In case educators fail to engage in the dialogue, the underlying roots of conflict will have an enormous negative impact on the prospects for sustainable peace in the conflict zone, and beyond it.

Quality higher education has always been a priority for all of us. However, it is not only associated with academic degrees and qualifications, internationalization and mobility, professional competences, but also with its reflection upon its relevance to the modern world. In the twenty-first century we are starting to more articulate fundamental values and principles, and universities are expected to make a contribution to sustainable human development, peace and security across the world.

With ruined universities, a generation of pupils living in conflict will grow up without the skills they need to contribute to their countries and economies, exacerbating the already desperate situation for thousands of students and their families. A person’s right to education cannot be safeguarded in conflict zones without education itself being protected.

 

In time of tension and trouble, generated from the other side of the border, we ask you to make efforts in your academic environment and beyond to recognize the Republic of Artsakh for protecting lives of Armenians, their young generation.  

Together with all of you, we can close this very shameful page in human history and stop the bloody, violently and deadly actions of Azerbaijan and Turkey and ensure safety in the region. We shouldn’t allow these two countries to turn the conflict into something larger in the end causing threat to the world. We do not want either the Armenian or Azerbaijani people to become the victims of the war.

We all shall stand up together and fight against terrorism in all our “educational” forms: call on the academics and students at our universities to condemn the terrorist tandem of Azerbaijan and Turkey supported by mercenaries from various terrorist groups, urge for the countries across the world to stop funding or arming these countries, cooperate to combat the threat of terrorism to the world by these countries and jointly contribute to upholding peace and stability in the region.

Through internationalization of education, students all over the world have become more effective communicators, more engaged citizens, and learned to think critically about the relationships between local and global issues and now we can use these skills for empowering individuals to become peacebuilders.

 

There is no way to peace, peace is the way, and it is worth going together!

 

Vice-Rectors for External Affairs, Heads of International Relations Offices of the Armenian Higher Education Institutions

Aleksander Markarov, Yerevan State University

Ruben Aghgashyan, National Polytechnic University of Armenia

Ervand Sahakyan, Yerevan State Medical University

Tereza Khechoyan, Public Administration Academy of Armenia

Vardges Yedoyan, National University of Architecture and Construction of Armenia

Arayik Navoyan, French University in Armenia Foundation

Anzhela Nushikyan, Armenian State Institute of Physical Culture

Hrachya Astsatryan, Institute for Informatics and Automation Problems, NAS RA

Kristina Tsaturyan, Brusov State University

Garik Hambardzumyan, Armenian National Agrarian University

Sona Matinyan, Armenian State University of Economics

Marianna Harutyunyan, Armenian State Pedagogical University

Svetlana Mashuryan, Russian-Armenian University

Arusyak Harutyunyan, International Scientific Educational Centre, NAS RA

Nune Jomardyan, Eurasia International University

Meri Patvakanyan, Yerevan State Academy of Fine Arts

Arkadi Avanesov, Yerevan Komitas State Conservatory

Zaruhi Sahakyan, Yerevan State Institute of Theatre and Cinematography

Gohar Dokholyan, Vanadzor State University

Hovik Melkonyan, Shirak State University

Lilit Torchyan, Gavar State University

Naira Safaryan, Goris State University

Ani Tamazyan, Northern University

 

Armenian team of Erasmus+ Higher Education Reform Experts

Samvel Karabekyan

Lusine Fljyan

Ruben Topchyan

Kristina Tsaturyan

Kristina Gevorgyan

Anna Gevorgyan

Arkadi Papoyan

Misha Tadevosyan

Mariam Yevdokimova

Elvira Zargaryan

Arayik Navoyan

 

 

Yerevan, 16.10.2020