Why in News ?

Clashes erupted between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the volatile Nagorno-Karabakh region, reigniting concern about instability in the South Caucasus, a corridor for pipelines transporting oil and gas to world markets. Armenia Azerbaijan Clash and India historical relations.

What is the issue ?

• Both sides, which fought a war in the 1990s, reported fatalities.
• Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh, a breakaway region that is inside Azerbaijan but is run by ethnic Armenians, declared martial law and mobilised their male populations.
  • A decades-old conflict between majority Christian Armenia and mainly Muslim Azerbaijan
• Armenia said Azerbaijan had carried out an air and artillery attack on Nagorno-Karabakh.
• Azerbaijan responded to Armenian shelling and that it had seized control of up to seven villages, but Nagorno-Karabakh denied this.

India Azerbaijan Relations

• India and Azerbaijan have close friendly relations and growing bilateral cooperation.
• Historical Evidence
  • Indian merchants heading towards Europe through the Great Silk Route used to visit Azerbaijan.
  • Medieval monument with Devanagri and Gurmukhi wall inscriptions is a symbol of the age-old relationship.
• India recognised Azerbaijan in December 1991.
• Agreements on visa exemption regime for diplomatic, official and service passport holders, Bilateral Investment Treaty, Double Taxation avoidance, and for cooperation in the areas of ICT, Health, Culture, and Tourism are still under progressive  discussions.
• The bilateral trade has increased substantially from around US$ 50 million in 2005 to around US$ 497 million in 2016.
• ONGC Videsh Limited (OVL) of India acquired shares worth US$ 1 billion in development project
  of the Azeri-Chirag-Gunashli (2.72%) oil field and the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipe line (2.36%) from US
  Company Hess in March 2013.
• The Indian community in Azerbaijan comprises of about 1700 persons, including professionals
  employed and business men.

India Armenia Relations

• India recognized the independent Republic of Armenia on December 26, 1991.
• Historical Evidence
  • Thomas Cana is said to be the first Armenian to have landed on the Malabar Coast in 780 AD.
  • In the 16th century, Armenian communities emerged in Kolkata, Chennai, Mumbai and Agra, where the first Armenian Church was consecrated in 1562.
• Armenia supported India’s candidature at the UNESCO, International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and
  UN Board of Auditors, International Telecommunication Union Council,
  • Also the inclusion of Yoga in the Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of UNESCO and ICJ.
• India supported Armenia’s claim for declaring its national bread Lavash as intangible cultural heritage by UNESCO in 2015.
• India’s exports to Armenia were USD 19.8 million in 2017 and imports in the same period were USD 2.8 million.
• Provided computer labs to 72 schools in Tavush region in 2011-12 worth US$ 0.5 mn and Project benefits over 14,000 students in the region.
• Indian community in Armenia is small and consists largely of over 800 students pursuing medical education.

Source : The Hindu

Topic

GS II : Effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India’s interests, Indian diaspora

Current Affairs Compilation : 28 September 2020