Vardan Oskanyan
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Vartan Minasi Oskanian ( hy, Վարդան Մինասի Օսկանյան; born February 7, 1954) is the former Foreign Minister of Armenia (1998–2008) and founder of the Civilitas Foundation.


Early life and career

Born into a wealthy Armenian jewelers' family in
Syria Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
, Oskanian was educated in the Armenian schools of
Aleppo )), is an adjective which means "white-colored mixed with black". , motto = , image_map = , mapsize = , map_caption = , image_map1 = ...
. After graduating from The
AGBU The Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU, Eastern Armenian: Հայկական Բարեգործական Ընդհանուր Միություն, ՀԲԸՄ, ''Haykakan Baregortsakan Endhanur Miutyun'', or hyw, Հայ Բարեգործական Ընդ ...
Armenian Central High School in 1973 he left Aleppo for
Yerevan Yerevan ( , , hy, Երևան , sometimes spelled Erevan) is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's oldest continuously inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerevan is the administrative, cultural, and i ...
, where he attended the Yerevan Polytechnic Institute and received a BSc degree in Structural Engineering. He continued his education with a graduate degree from the
Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy is the graduate school of international affairs of Tufts University, in Medford, Massachusetts. The School is one of America's oldest graduate schools of international relations and is well-ranked in it ...
in the United States; his fields of concentration were International Monetary Theory and Policy, and Diplomatic History and Foreign Policies. Oskanian also received degrees from
Tufts University Tufts University is a private research university on the border of Medford and Somerville, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1852 as Tufts College by Christian universalists who sought to provide a nonsectarian institution of higher learning. ...
and the
Harvard Kennedy School of Government The Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), officially the John F. Kennedy School of Government, is the school of public policy and government of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school offers master's degrees in public policy, public ...
. In addition to Armenian, Oskanian speaks English, Arabic, French, Russian and Turkish. In 1990, while finishing his graduate studies, he and a group of friends founded the '' Armenian International Magazine'' (AIM) in California. Oskanian was an international trustee of
Armenia Fund Armenia Fund (full name Hayastan All Armenian Fund, hy, Հայաստան համահայկական հիմնադրամ) was established in 1994 in Los Angeles, California. Armenia Fund, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt, non-governmental, non-politica ...
, an organization that channels aid from the Armenian Diaspora to rebuild Armenia and
Nagorno-Karabakh Nagorno-Karabakh ( ) is a landlocked region in the South Caucasus, within the mountainous range of Karabakh, lying between Lower Karabakh and Syunik, and covering the southeastern range of the Lesser Caucasus mountains. The region is m ...
. He was also president of the Pan-Armenian Games.


Move to Armenia

Oskanian moved to Armenia in 1992, shortly after Armenia's independence, and began work at the foreign ministry, first in the Middle East Department, then as head of the North America Department. In 1994, he became Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and in 1996, First Deputy. During those years, Oskanian was a Visiting Assistant Professor at the
American University of Armenia The American University of Armenia (AUA) ( hy, Հայաստանի ամերիկյան համալսարան, ՀԱՀ; ''Hayastani amerikyan hamalsaran'', ''HAH'') is a private, independent university in Yerevan, Armenia that is accredited by the Wes ...
, where he taught International Economic Relations, American Foreign Policy, Introduction to International Relations and International Economic Relations. In 1998, he was appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs by President Robert Kocharyan.


Term as Foreign Minister

During his time as minister of foreign affairs, Oskanian pursued six main policies. The policy of "complementarity" emphasized inclusion and collaboration between Armenia and its neighbors. It made possible a strategic partnership with Russia, continued membership in the
Collective Security Treaty Organization The Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) is an intergovernmental military alliance in Eurasia consisting of six post-Soviet states: Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, and Tajikistan. The Collective Security Treat ...
, and brought Armenia's relationship with
NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two N ...
to a level short of membership. The policy of multilateralism sought consistent engagement in global issues. Next, through promoting Armenia's integration with Europe, Oskanian worked to accelerate integration with the
Council of Europe The Council of Europe (CoE; french: Conseil de l'Europe, ) is an international organisation founded in the wake of World War II to uphold human rights, democracy and the rule of law in Europe. Founded in 1949, it has 46 member states, with a p ...
, the European Union and NATO (Armenia received free membership status in the Council of Europe in 2001). In regards Armenia-Diaspora relations, Oskanian established fruitful relationships with Armenian lobbying organizations in the US and Europe, with other Armenian organizations and with individuals, including
Tracinda Corporation Tracinda Corporation is an American private investment corporation that was owned by the late Kirk Kerkorian. Its major investments included a minority interest of MGM Resorts International. Tracinda is headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada. Th ...
owner
Kirk Kerkorian Kerkor Kerkorian ( hy, Գրիգոր Գրիգորեան; June 6, 1917 – June 15, 2015) was an American businessman, investor, and philanthropist. He was the president and CEO of Tracinda Corporation, his private holding company based in Beve ...
. For Armenia-Turkey relations, Oskanian's policy insisted on the logic of Armenia's normal relations with Turkey and included early attempts toward protocols between the two states. The sixth major policy was a strategy for the resolution of the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is an ethnic and territorial conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh, inhabited mostly by ethnic Armenians, and seven surrounding districts, inhabited mostly by Azerbaij ...
. On this issue, Oskanian's approach broke significantly from previous policy. He pursued a comprehensive agreement that did not force Nagorno-Karabakh to remain within Azerbaijan. Born of this effort was the classification “de facto independent, de jure not part of Azerbaijan.” The efforts of this policy brought about the "Common State Agreement" and the "Key West agreement" (both eventually rejected by Azerbaijan), the " Prague process" in 2004, which involved the OSCE and representatives from France, Russia and the US, and most recently “the Madrid document.”


Political activities

In 2012, Oskanian was elected to the National Assembly of Armenia as a candidate for the Prosperous Armenia Party. In October 2012, the National Assembly, then controlled by the
Republican Party of Armenia The Republican Party of Armenia (RPA, hy, Հայաստանի Հանրապետական Կուսակցություն, ՀՀԿ; ''Hayastani Hanrapetakan Kusaktsutyun'', ''HHK'') is a national-conservative political party in Armenia led by the thir ...
, voted to remove Oskanian's immunity from prosecution. Oskanian was charged with embezzlement and money laundering in connection with a $2 million donation by
Jon Huntsman Sr. Jon Meade Huntsman Sr. (June 21, 1937 – February 2, 2018) was an American businessman and philanthropist. He was the founder and executive chairman of Huntsman Corporation, a global manufacturer and marketer of specialty chemicals. Huntsman pl ...
to Oskanian's Civilitas Foundation. Oskanian considered the criminal case politically motivated and a reaction to his and the Prosperous Armenia Party's criticism of Serzh Sargsyan's administration. Oskanian admitted to inadvertently using some of the donation for personal purposes, and the criminal case was dropped and settled out of court. In March 2015, Oskanian left the Prosperous Armenia Party. In April 2016, Oskanian founded the Unity Party. The Unity party joined the
ORO Alliance The ORO Alliance ( hy, ՕՐՕ դաշինք), also known as the Ohanyan-Raffi-Oskanian Alliance, was an Armenian political alliance formed by the merger of the Unity and Heritage Parties and the former Minister of Defence Seyran Ohanyan to run in ...
, which participated in the
2017 Armenian parliamentary election Parliamentary elections were held in Armenia on 2 April 2017. They were the first elections after a constitutional referendum in 2015 that approved reforms for the country to become a parliamentary republic. The result was a victory for the ruli ...
but did not pass the threshold to enter parliament.


Other activities

In 2008, Oskanian founded the Civilitas Foundation, named after the Latin term for "the citizen's responsibility to society." The Civilitas Foundation has two main programs, "The Democracy and Development Initiative," which works in education, media, rural development and environmental awareness, and "The Council on Foreign Relations," which advocates for peace and stability in the Caucasus through dialogue and open intercourse. The Civilitas Foundation also operates an online media outlet, CivilNet, which produces content in Armenian and English.


Personal life

Vartan Oskanian is married to Dr. Nani Oskanian. They have two sons.


Publications

In 2009, Oskanian published the book ''Speaking To Be Heard: A Decade of Speeches,'' also published in Armenian as ''Anavart Tasnamyak'' ("Unfinished Decade"). The book collects around one hundred speeches delivered by Oskanian during his time as foreign minister. In 2013, he published his memoirs in Armenian, titled ''Ankakhutyan Chanaparhov'' ("On the Path of Independence").


Articles and Speeches

*http://articles.latimes.com/2007/feb/07/opinion/oe-oskanian7 *http://www.armeniaforeignministry.com/minister/070406_vo.html *http://www.neurope.eu/articles/Armenia-comes-closer-to-Europe/67262.php *https://www.un.org/webcast/ga/61/pdfs/armenia-e.pdf


External links


Website of the Civilitas Foundationhttp://armenianreporter.am/index.cfm?objectid=B86F167B-3FF3-352C-23089BF2078690C1


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Oskanian, Vartan The Fletcher School at Tufts University alumni Harvard University alumni Living people 1954 births People from Aleppo Syrian people of Armenian descent Government ministers of Armenia Syrian emigrants to the Soviet Union Foreign ministers of Armenia