Armenia prides itself on being the first nation to formally
adopt Christianity (early 4th century). Despite periods
of autonomy, over the centuries Armenia came under the sway
of various empires including the Roman, Byzantine, Arab,
Persian, and Ottoman. During World War I in the western
portion of Armenia, the Ottoman Empire instituted a policy
of forced resettlement coupled with other harsh practices
that resulted in at least one million Armenian deaths. The
eastern area of Armenia was ceded by the Ottomans to Russia
in 1828; this portion declared its independence in 1918,
but was conquered by the Soviet Red Army in 1920.
Armenia remains involved in the protracted Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict with Azerbaijan. Nagorno-Karabakh was a primarily
ethnic Armenian region that Moscow recognized in 1923 as
an autonomous oblast within Soviet Azerbaijan. In the late
Soviet period, a separatist movement developed which sought
to end Azerbaijani control over the region. Fighting over
Nagorno-Karabakh began in 1988 and escalated after Armenia
and Azerbaijan attained independence from the Soviet Union
in 1991. By the time a ceasefire took effect in May 1994,
separatists, with Armenian support, controlled Nagorno-Karabakh
and seven surrounding Azerbaijani territories. The 1994
ceasefire continues to hold, although violence continues
along the line of contact separating the opposing forces,
as well as the Armenia-Azerbaijan international border.
The final status of Nagorno-Karabakh remains the subject
of international mediation by the Organization for Security
and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Minsk Group, which works
to help the sides settle the conflict peacefully. The OSCE
Minsk Group is co-chaired by the US, France, and Russia.
Turkey closed the common border with Armenia in 1993 in
support of Azerbaijan in its conflict with Armenia over
control of Nagorno-Karabakh and surrounding areas, further
hampering Armenian economic growth. In 2009, Armenia and
Turkey signed Protocols normalizing relations between the
two countries, but neither country ratified the Protocols,
and Armenia officially withdrew from the Protocols in March
2018. In 2015, Armenia joined the Eurasian Economic Union
alongside Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan. In
November 2017, Armenia signed a Comprehensive and Enhanced
Partnership Agreement with the EU. In spring 2018, Serzh
Sargsian of the Republican Party of Armenia stepped down
and Civil Contract party leader Nikol Pashinyan became prime
minister.
Location:
South-western Asia, between Turkey (to the west) and Azerbaijan;
note - Armenia views itself as part of Europe; geopolitically,
it can be classified as falling within Europe, the Middle
East, or both.
