These days the whole world was closely watching whether or not Russia would attack Ukraine. People were worried that World War III might break out. Such tensions, as we see in the events surrounding Ukraine, have never happened before since the Cuban missile crisis back in 1960s, when nuclear war between the two superpowers was highly probable. Against this backdrop, it is interesting to observe the reactions of the Armenian social media. How do ordinary citizens of Armenia assess the situation, what "image" about the world is etched in their minds?

Some predicted that somehow, Russia, after invading Ukraine, would sink into a heavy and exhausting war, and as a result would collapse, and the West would celebrate a final victory. Others, realizing its consequences, were worried that NATO member Turkey would benefit from all the happenings, which would increase its influence in the South Caucasus and Central Asia, with related consequences for us - there is no place for Armenians in the possible Turkic world.

In this regard, a question arises as to how much the Ukrainian events are really interconnected with our region. The answer, in case of a sober approach, seems to be obvious: the events in Ukraine are directly related to our region, and it should be v viewed as a common conflict, played on different boards at the same time. It is clear that the Russia-US conflict is a global one, which is underway to determine the rules of the future game of the emerging new world order, and the US goal is to limit Russia's geopolitical influence, be it in the Caucasus or in Eastern Europe. It is not accidental that after the Artsakh war the Donbas conflict was exacerbated likewise, as they are interconnected conflicts. In Ukraine they realized that through such a war the problem of Donbas could also be solved with the same allies, with the same weapons, in particular, with Bayraktars, which Ukraine began to actively buy from Turkey after the Artsakh war.

NATO member Turkey increased its influence in the South Caucasus and Central Asia as a consequence of Artsakh war, now it is Ukraine's turn. This is a geopolitical competition, where Turkey is the partner of the West and the main beneficiary. In this sense, yes, we can say that the events in Ukraine are interconnected with the developments in our region. From the point of view of our region, the West is not interested in Armenia and Artsakh, but in bigger issues - the limitation of the influence of Russia, Iran, and China, as well as their economic isolation.

It should be clear to the citizens of Armenia that when elephants fight, it is the grass that suffers, and we should consider the events in Ukraine not as a local conflict in a region far from us, but as an event directly related to us.