While Israelian's talk about restoring Soviet power may be an idle fantasy, it reflects a very real frustration, both here and in Armenia, with the fruits of independence. Over the past decade, Armenia, an ancient Christian nation, has scored a remarkable series of military victories over its hereditary Muslim enemy, culminating in the seizure of 20 percent of Azerbaijani territory. Economically, however, Armenians are reeling. Western diplomats estimate that a third of Armenia's Soviet-era population of 3.6 million has left the country since independence in search of work and better living conditions. An estimated 40 percent of the remaining population is unemployed.
Corruption is rampant.
Political killings are commonplace, as illustrated by a terrorist attack on the Armenian parliament in Yerevan, the capital, last October that resulted in eight deaths, including the prime minister and speaker of parliament. One of the by-products of the economic chaos has been a renewed interest in peace with Azerbaijan, which is widely seen as an essential first step to the return of economic stability. Once adamantly opposed to any concessions to Baku, the Azerbaijani capital, Kocharian now appears to realize that the only long-term solution to Armenia's terrible economic situation lies in abandoning the siege mentality of the past decade. U.S. officials believe that he wants to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh issue once and for all as part of securing a smooth political transition to his son, Ilham. The conflict was the first of dozens of ethnic disputes to flare up in the Communist world during the waning years of the Cold War, establishing a pattern that would soon become familiar from Bosnia to Moldova to Chechnya.