I am a typical representative of the “Soviet Armenians”. My dad was born in Georgia, mom – in Ryazan, Central Russia. Despite the fact that I was born and grew up in yet another Russian town, Yaroslavl, there was not a single Armenian peer around me, and I had never been to Armenia in my childhood, for some reason I always considered myself to be Armenian. This, I think, confirms the theory of the genetic connection, and in the discussion paper “At the Crossroads” is rightly referred to as a potential opportunity for the nation.
However, I never felt the need for reunion. This, I believe, is another direction that should be developed: the expansion of culture, faith, language in the major places of concentration of the Armenian diasporans – not by enthusiasts, but as a part of the state policy.
It was very interesting and informative for me to get acquainted with the chapters of historical analysis. Perhaps, for more deeply informed people the facts contained in them will not be something new, but I myself learned a lot. It is very well stated, not always structured, but definitely useful. It may even be worth publishing this part separately for people like me.
As far as the proposed strategy itself is concerned, “At the Crossroads” is a very good work, with clear analytics and calculations, a qualitative comparison with the world analogues. But, as it seems to me, the strategy described in it has few chances for implementation due to the lack of a specific action plan, just as it was with the previous work “Armenia 2020”. Concrete successful examples of the projects implemented in Armenia can hardly become drivers of development. The systems approach needs either a clear sequence of steps at the state level, or a strong leader who will promote this approach.
The questions asked at the end of the paper are no less interesting than the strategy itself, but the key question, perhaps, is how to engage the nation in the discussion of all the questions hanging over it? Finding the answers, in my opinion, can also become one of the effective tools for unifying.
