Armenia — quo vadis?

‍Panel discussion with Tessa Hofmann, Chair of the Working Group Recognition - Against Genocide, for Citizen Understanding (AGA), and Hans-Jochen Schmidt, former Ambassador
Moderated by Roy Knocke (Lepsiushaus Potsdam)

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The situation in the South Caucasus remains a matter of great concern. The invasion of Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh) by Azerbaijani troops in September 2023 led to a mass expulsion of the Armenian population there and the dissolution of the Republic of Artsakh. Despite a civilian observer mission from the European Union and international diplomatic efforts, many observers fear that Azerbaijan could also attack Armenian territory in order to create a connection corridor with Turkey. To this end, the Republic of Armenia sees itself challenged domestically by around 150,000 refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh Armenians and is turning away more and more from Russia as a protective power towards Europe. Against the background of these developments, the panel discussion discusses Armenia's past and present, geopolitical and domestic political situation. It also looks at the role of Europe and Germany in creating lasting peace in the South Caucasus.

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Tessa Hofmann studied modern philology (Slavic studies, Armenology) and sociology. She published numerous publications on the history, culture and present situation of Armenia and its diaspora as well as on comparative genocide research with a focus on the late Ottoman genocide of indigenous Christians (1912-1922). Since 1979, she has been active in human rights, including in the Society for Threatened Peoples, and the Working Group Recognition - Against Genocide, for Peoples Understanding, the Sponsoring Community for the Victims of Genocide in the Ottoman Empire.

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Hans-Jochen Schmidt joined the Foreign Office after studying law. In addition to assignments at headquarters, he worked abroad at embassies and consulates general in Cairo, Kinshasa, Atlanta, St. Petersburg, Kiev, Almaty/Astana and Minsk (as ambassador of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe [OSCE] 2008/2009). He was ambassador to Yerevan, Armenia, from 2009-2012, after which he worked as an election observer and lecturer on international relations in Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh and as an expert in Kosovo, Kazakhstan and Cambodia.

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