ABSTRACT
Chapter Three considers the Nagorno Karabakh Republic’s (NKR) state identity and examines its normative standing in the international system. The NKR’s role identity of victor, arising from sustained, accumulated victimisation, is presented, detailing the importance of perceived victimhood in Armenian nationalism throughout the twentieth century. That historical backdrop is required to understand the symbolic power of Nagorno Karabakh as a shift in the narrative of Armenian nationalism. The NKR’s type identity of a successful self-determination movement is explored, revealing the self-perception of an independent, self-styled emerging democracy that is further scrutinised to show the importance of this function beyond the idea of earned sovereignty as a form of legitimation. This chapter then assesses the relationship between democratisation and innovative international engagement strategies to challenge the reductionist account of international engagement as primarily attempted legitimation. These components of the NKR’s state identity are drawn together to contextualise its recognition narrative and clarify its normative standing.
