Identity politics as a factor of international conflict: the Nagorno-Karabakh case

Abstract

The present article is devoted to the problem of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. It investigates the place of identity politics in the processes of its conflict management. It is concluded that identity politics is one of the main factors in the conflict, which hinders its resolution and is not taken into account by the states parties of the negotiation process. This factor is expressed in nationalist rhetoric, which, in general, appeals to the people’s emotions of both conflicting parties and disputed territories. The rhetoric is based on the interpretation of historical events and phenomena, as well as cultural features. This situation makes the conflict «irrational», minimizing the possibility of using the tools of diplomacy, eliminating the possibility of compromise and increasing the possibility of military confrontation.
Awareness of the unambiguous positions of the parties to the conflict, their reluctance to seek compromise solutions acts as a «key» to solving this problem. It requires a change in approach to the settlement process. The author proposes an approach within which the existing problems and the status quo are rethought in the categories of «past-future» as opposed to the existing logic of «friend-enemy». In practice, this approach can be implemented by gradually rethinking the imperatives of thinking of political elites, which contain a conflict component and, in the long run, changing the way of thinking of political elites. This process should be provided by representatives of civil society and business because of their direct effect on the public opinion and general rhetoric about the problem. This approach can help to integrate a «rational component» in resolving this conflict. Increasing the influence of external players on the development of these areas (primarily by financing joint Armenian-Azerbaijani scientific, cultural, business, infrastructure, etc. projects) in the long run may change those components of national identities of conflicting parties that generate aggressive rhetoric. It is important to note that the concerted actions of the OSCE Minsk Group should be the driving force behind these changes.