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The author describes these links as unstable, pares it to the politics of Catholicism in Eu- as they began with a period of optimism but rope in the second half of the 19th century. The gradually weakened. Increasing opposition to latter can be explained through five elements: EU membership and the concessions that are “(1) mass mobilization, (2) an anti-system required for admission caused a delay in the political discourse, (3) the combination of an reforms. In conclusion, the AKP’s policy to- appeal to religious sensibilities coupled with a wards the EU shows the search for a balance political message of economic inclusion, (4) between the need to integrate Turkey into the the modernization of religious practices, and international system and internal pressure to (5) the ultimate moderation of Catholic par- not concede on key issues. ties and the democratization of the political institutions” (p.192). With these elements in Finally, in the last chapter, “The Turkish mind, Kalyvas further suggests a comparison Model in the Matrix of Political Catholicism,” between the Catholic anti-system activism Stathis Kalyvas tries to answer the question of and the so-called New Turkish model. how idiosyncratic the Turkish model is. The author hypothesizes that this phenomenon is In conclusion, the book informs former stud- part of a global trend that could have clearly ies on Turkey and invites readers to evaluate materialized in Europe in the 19th century. the Turkish model, with a series of articles Kalyvas defines the Turkish model and com- that offer different perspectives.

Ethnicity, Nationalism, and Conflict in the South Caucasus Nagorno-Karabakh and the Legacy of Soviet Nationalities Policy

By Ohannes Geukjian Surrey: Ashgate, 2012, 264 pages, ISBN 9781409436300. Reviewed by Mehmet Fatih Öztarsu

The Soviet Union, which has two position – tell the true story of the contradictory definitions (“Prison Soviet geography. of Peoples” and “Free Association of Peoples”), is seen as the perpe- Ethnicity, Nationalism, and Con- trator of many ethnic and regional flict in the South Caucasus, written problems in Eurasia today. Its man- by Ohannes Geukjian, examines agement of culture with numerous the problematic culture of the So- ethnic and religious elements and viets within its historical origins an ideological perspective that de- by approaching these issues from flects criticism are the most important issues the perspective of the South Caucasus. The to focus on to understand the Soviet Union. author, starting with the examples of Azer- The ideals imposed on social and cultural life baijan, Armenia and Georgia, illustrates that by communist ideology – nationalism, reli- other Soviet countries have the same prob- gious movements, local conflicts and decom- lems. Geukjian, who evaluates the impact of

244 Insight Turkey chronic issues on Eurasia today by first ad- ethnic structures in the region and more ef- dressing Nagorno-Karabakh, explores the fectively manage the local population (p. 41). history of Armenia and Azerbaujan. As the The conflicts between the two sides, despite historical discussion of problems has a sig- this migration policy, reignited because of nificant meaning for present times, it proves the Armenian dominance of the Baku market their historical existence in the region. after oil was discovered. The events that oc- curred in the early years of the 20th century The author, who states that the first Arme- are now politicized by Russian, Armenian, nians were seen in the Hayasa-Azzi Confed- and Georgian social democrats (p. 44). eration in Erzurum-Erzincan and that Arme- nian culture was integrated with the Arimi- The author, referring to the periods experi- Urumea Confederation in Van-Mus, uses the enced among the Turks, the British, and the Atropatena civilization as a reference point Russians in the region during and after the for the history of Azerbaijan. Given that this First World War and eventually the interest- historiography begins in the 1940s, namely in ing parsing policies under the dominance the Soviet period, we can say that initiatives of the Soviet Union, emphasizes the need to from both sides to strengthen their claim of scrutinize Russification efforts in order to un- being the oldest civilization in the region are derstand ethnic and regional problems more more complicated. Geukjian tries to draw a clearly (p. 81). cultural picture of the region by retracing the historical roots of the Karabakh issue. Nev- Geukjian states there was a real consciousness ertheless, the existence of the Albanian civi- of “Soviet People” under Lenin, but relations lization in the Caucasus, which is a historical between Russians and non-Russians severily enigma today, leads to intense fighting over decomposed after his death. This conscious- history. Albania, which is an ancient Chris- ness was reinforced by three main elements tian civilization in the Caucasus, was a former of the Sovietization policy: economic devel- Azerbaijani state according to Azerbaijan and opment, anti-nationalism and collectivism a former state of the Christian Armenians ac- movement (p. 87). When we examine these cording to Armenia. Geukjian uses the work elements, we see that the ethnic disintegra- of Azerbaijani historians, such as E. Buniatov, tion and nationalism of Soviet rule increased F. Mamedov and Akhundov, to discuss this due to this policy and the choice of decision- issue (p. 33). makers to make conflicts political. As such, practices such as political murder, intellectual Geukjian, who notes that the first conflict genocide, intervention in publications, and between Armenia and Azerbaijan caused the censorship, which were carried out in context Russian-Iranian wars and that the first at- of the policy of Sovietization, boosted nation- tempt to break up the Caucasus began in the alism while also fueling hatred against the 19th century, cites some interesting data about central government. the period of Russian dominance in the re- gion. The author asserts that Russia deported Geukjian draws attention to how the extreme 57,000 Armenians from Russia and the North practices of the Stalin era backfired and Le- Caucasus to Karabakh and Yerevan, and ninist policies gained importance during the 35,000 Azerbaijani Muslims from Karabakh period of Khrushchev. The administration to different areas to destroy the homogenous attempt to form an artificial sense of shared

2014 Fall 245 BOOK REVIEWS

history with the understanding of “Soviet and the local conflicts in Azerbaijan that Peoples” in 1962 was unable to bridge the gap materialized with the support of the Soviet between Russians and non-Russians. Rising government, notes that Armenia’s militarist political nationalism in 1973-75 became the approach in Karabakh strengthened the resis- biggest problem in Ukraine, the Baltic and tance. However, the most important question the Caucasus. Georgian Zviad Gamsakhur- is why the Russians supported Baku against dia criticized the pressure of Russification the Armenians. Although it is known that the through Samizdat and Eduard Shevardnadze occupying and slaughtering in and around emphasized the issue of Abkhazia in Georgia Karabakh were carried out largely by the Rus- (p. 100). In short, the practices during the era sian-Armenian partnership, it is unclear why of Stalin led to the emergence of interethnic the author emphasizes the Russian-Azerbai- problems via oppressive anti-religious and jani association. anti-ethnic legislation. An inextricable prob- lem emerged because intellectuals who op- Geukjian, who also addresses the political posed cultural repression were killed, citizens friction between Yerevan and Karabakh after who did not speak Russian were treated as independence, offers the most important in- second-class citizens, and the central govern- sight into the tension among the Armenians: ment improved certain Soviet capitals more then Armenian President Levon Ter Petro- than others. In the 1980s, the anger and ha- syan guarenteed the Karabakh Armenians tred that people had suppressed for decades that he would not claim Karabakh. It clearly emerged through political activities and states that the ongoing friction in Yerevan- turned into an act of revenge both against the Karabakh was inherited from that period. center and neighboring countries. Although the author tries to examine the period using a vast number of resources, he Geukjian, who discusses the impact of these shares the rhetoric of the Azerbaijani side in policies on the Karabakh issue largely by us- a limited way, resulting in a one-sided ap- ing Armenian and Western sources, describes proach. However, the Soviet policies, which such formations as the Karabakh Committee, are analyzed in the case of the Karabakh the Miatsum Movement and the Armenian problem, are covered comphrensively. The National Congress, which were established book’s examination of the ethnic and re- by the Armenians as the first independence gional conflicts that emerged on the basis of movements under the auspices of free politi- nationality utilizes a cause-effect framework, cal activity in the 1980s. Geukjian, emphasiz- making the inter-communal problems more ing the formation of counter-organizations understandable.

246 Insight Turkey