Newmag Publishing House and the Gulbenkian Foundation presented the book “Broken Shield” on Armenia TV’s “Good Morning” program (video)

Speaking about the book, its coordinator and editor, candidate of historical sciences Karen Harutyunyan, noted that while most articles focus on the 2020 war, the collection also addresses social issues, diplomatic developments, and pre-war events.

“Work on these articles began shortly after the war. A group of specialists and experts was formed, coordinated by the book’s editor, Vicken Cheterian. There were numerous meetings, and what we have now is quite valuable.

The book is written using scientific methodology but remains accessible and easy to read. It includes contributions from two Azerbaijani authors, both dissidents who no longer reside in Azerbaijan. The English version will be published in London this fall. To Newmag’s credit, the Armenian edition came out first, as most of the texts were originally written in English and translated. Unfortunately, over the past two decades, nearly all important academic work on the Karabakh conflict has been commissioned by non-Armenian institutions.”

“Broken Shield” is a collection of academic essays that examine the Artsakh war from multiple perspectives. One of the contributors is Naira Sahakyan, an orientalist, historian, and assistant professor at the American University of Armenia. She explained that in recent years, she has mainly studied Azerbaijani discourse on Artsakh.

“At some point, I began to reflect on how the Armenian discourse around Artsakh developed. At first glance, everything seems straightforward, but when I studied Armenian political rhetoric on Artsakh from 1988 to the present, I made very interesting discoveries.

Why should people read this book? After November 9, 2020, many were asking how it happened that the victorious army of the Caucasus was defeated. This book is an attempt to answer that question, offering a range of perspectives.”

Another contributor, political scientist Narek Sukiasyan, focused on Armenia–Russia relations. He noted that his original aim was to analyze Russia’s actions during the war, but he soon realized that a deeper look at the foundations of that policy was necessary.

“I reviewed the evolution of Russian policy toward the conflict since Armenia’s independence. Surprisingly, it has remained largely unchanged for 35 years. Despite Russia's formal alliance with Armenia, its foreign policy documents consistently show that Moscow never intended to take sides or resolve the conflict in favor of either party, it would have contradicted its interests.

Following the war, Russian–Armenian relations deteriorated. According to a sociological survey conducted last year, one-third of Armenian respondents consider Russia a major threat.”

He emphasized that the book’s primary goal is to provoke critical thinking and dialogue. According to Sukiasyan, Armenian society has yet to fully process or come to terms with the war and its outcome. Broken Shield aims to contribute to that much-needed reflection.