Johannes Rau Books

The conflict which broke out between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the Nagorno-Karabakh region at the end of the 1980s reached its high point with the destruction of the Azerbaijani town of Khojali. The massacre of the civilian population claimed hundreds of lives. Armenia occupied 20 % of the territory of Azerbaijan. This led to hundreds of thousands of people being expelled from their homeland. The war cost 30,000 lives. The conflict itself is deeply rooted in both countries’ histories. The general public is largely unaware of the historical context. This book closes the information gap. A large number of historical facts are presented to a broad readership for the first time.

The Caucasus region, situated on a natural isthmus between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, has long been a border zone and a melting pot for a diverse range of cultures and peoples. As the intersection between Europe and Asia, and also - tween Russia and the Ottoman and Persian Empires, it has featured in the strategic plans of numerous great powers over the centuries. Given its abundance of natural resources, the ready-made raw material transport routes to Europe and its enduring position on the edge of Russia, nothing has changed to the present day. The tremendous development opportunities of the Caucasian region are being tarnished by unresolved territorial conflicts that put a continual and regionally balanced growth, sustained democratisation and long-term stability at risk. These conflicts, which all erupted with the dissolution of the Soviet Union, include the separatist movements in Abkhazia, Chechnya, Nagorno-Karabakh and South - setia. The war over South Ossetia, which erupted between Russia and Georgia in August 2008, spelt out the explosive potential still inherent in these conflicts.

Johannes Rau(1931-2006) zeichnet eindrückliche Bilder verschiedener Persönlichkeiten, die ihr Leben in Verantwortung vor Gott und vor ihren Mitmenschen geführt haben. Die einzelnen Porträts zeigen, wie der Glaube ins politische Handeln, in die politische Mitarbeit und Beteiligung führt.

1988-1994 tobte die heiße Phase dieses blutigen Krieges zwischen Armenien und Aserbaidschan um das auf aserbaidschanischem Gebiet liegende autonome Gebiet Nagorny-Karabach, das mehrheitlich von Armeniern bewohnt war. Im Verlaufe dieses Krieges, der von Pogromen und gnadenlosen ethnischen Säuberungen auf beiden Seiten begleitet wurde, kamen 17.500 Armenier und 25.500 Aserbaidschaner um. 900.000 Aserbaidschaner und 300.000 Armenier wurden zu Flüchtlingen. Armenien hält immer noch ein Fünftel des Territoriums Aserbaidschans besetzt. Alle zumeist halbherzig vorgetragenen nationalen und internationalen Vermittlungsbemühungen sind bisher gescheitert. Prof. Dr. Johannes Rau weist eindrucksvoll nach, dass der Nagorny-Karabach-Konflikt der am schwierigsten zu lösende Konflikt im Transkaukasus ist.