Multi-Stakeholder Discussion: Contributing to Peace Through Democracy, Human Rights, and Dignity for Conflict-Affected Populations in Armenia

© 2024. PHOTO BY PEACE DIALOGUE NGO. AUTHOR: ERIK MARTIROSYAN

On July 26, 2024, Peace Dialogue NGO hosted a multi-stakeholder discussion titled “Mapping and Addressing the Needs of Conflict-Affected Groups in Armenia: Hopes, Fears, and Expectations in the Armenia-Azerbaijan Peace Process.” The event brought together a diverse group of stakeholders, including government officials, members of Parliament (MPs), civil society representatives, think tanks, experts, and international partners.

The primary objective of this multi-stakeholder discussion was to amplify the voices of those directly affected by the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict and to develop proactive strategies for addressing their needs. The dialogue aimed to contribute to a more comprehensive and sustainable peace and normalisation efforts grounded in democracy, human rights, and the dignity of conflict-affected populations.

During the opening session, Mr. Hayk Darbinyan, the Head of the Department of Neighbouring Countries of the RA Ministry of Foreign Affairs, emphasized the importance of a comprehensive peace and normalisation agenda. He presented the latest updates on the peace process, specifically highlighting the outcomes of the fourth European Political Community (EPC) meeting held on July 18, 2024, in the United Kingdom. Mr. Darbinyan underscored the Armenian government’s commitment to fostering peace and stability in the region.

In her opening remarks, Ms. Silvia Zehe, Political Advisor to the EUSR, discussed the EU’s role in providing multilayered support to the peace and normalization processes between Armenia and Azerbaijan. She highlighted the European Union’s initiatives supporting official peace negotiations and other important elements in the normalization process, the support of those efforts through EU-financed confidence-building and peacebuilding programs, the active involvement of civil society in these track-two efforts, and the EU’s engagement to foster human security in conflict-affected areas of Armenia.

The opening remarks were followed by discussions on the geopolitical challenges of Armenia’s peace agenda, where panelists addressed aspects related to the invasion of Russia into Ukraine, recent geopolitical turbulence in neighboring countries, security threats to Armenia, and Armenia’s resilience strategies. One of the MPs emphasized that Armenian-Turkish relations are also crucial for this agenda. He noted that the de-blocking of transport links and people-to-people communication are vital for pushing the peace agenda forward and mentioned the “Crossroads of Peace” project as an important part of this initiative.

Dr. Markus Ritter, Head of Mission of the European Union Mission in Armenia (EUMA), opened the panel on the Human Dimension of Armenia’s Peace Agenda. He shared findings from the EU Mission’s work in Armenia, highlighting human security challenges in conflict-affected areas. Dr. Ritter provided a comprehensive overview of EUMA’s efforts to enhance human security in Armenia.

During the panel “Addressing Human Security Challenges for Conflict-Affected Groups,” participants discussed the problems of addressing human security challenges for conflict-affected groups, including issues related to security, well-being, freedom, and identity concerns of the conflict-affected communities in Armenia. This included in particular also those Armenians who were displaced from Nagorno-Karabakh and border-adjacent and frontline communities of Armenia with Azerbaijan.

The event concluded with closing remarks by Edgar Khachatryan, head of Peace Dialogue NGO. On behalf of Peace Dialogue, Mr. Khachatryan expressed his heartfelt gratitude to all attendees and emphasized the importance of sustained efforts in fostering democracy, human rights, and the dignity of conflict-affected communities as essential for achieving sustainable peace in the region.

This project was implemented in partnership with Conciliation Resources NGO and was supported by the European Union’s EU4Peace program. The project’s partner was CMI – the Martti Ahtisaari Peace Foundation.