Nagorno-Karabakh in Regional and World Politics: A Case Study for Nationalism, Realism and Ethnic Conflict

The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict constitutes a perfect case study for empirical and theoretical studies in international relations dealing with the issue of nationalism and ethnic conflict as well as with realism and constructivism. The fact that the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh is recognized by the international community as part of Azerbaijan did not change the reality that the region was captured by local Armenian forces with the help of Armenia proper and Russia. This state of affairs seemed like a vindication of realist school of thought in international relations theory with its age old dictum "might makes right". As far as the end result of the conflict is concerned, this is a correct analysis. However, when one takes the state identities and policies of Armenia and Azerbaijan, we need to recognize ideational factors such as national honor, and dignity which make any compromise on Karabakh highly costly regarding each government's relations with its constituents. This paper will demonstrate that constructivist variables are essential in explicating the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in addition to the realist factors currently at play, particularly since conquest of the region does not significantly add to a country's resources and power.