Eduard Abrahamyan
Eduard Abrahamyan is a defense policy and regional security analyst with emphasis on the Black Sea, South Caucasus and Central Asia. He is Doctoral Research Fellow at the University of Leicester, UK, studying the adaptation of NATO Partnership Policy in the Black Sea-Caucasus region amidst an evolving security environment (2008-2018). Abrahamyan is also Senior Associate Fellow at the Institute for Statecraftb based in London, as well as regular contributor to the IHS Markit (Jane’s Military Capabilities), The Jamestown Foundation, The National Interest, Foreign Policy Research Institute and the Central Asia–Caucasus Institute at the American Foreign Policy Council. He is also a 2017 Rumsfeld Fellow .
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Articles by Eduard Abrahamyan
Is Russia Cultivating ‘Symmetric Separatism’ in Karabakh?
Moscow’s mistrust of the Armenian government headed by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan dates all the way back to his rise to power last year in the so-called “Velvet Revolution.” And
Rationalizing the Tonoyan Doctrine: Armenia’s Active Deterrence Strategy
Even as Armenia and Azerbaijan have intensified their diplomatic contacts over the future status of the latter’s breakaway Karabakh region (see EDM, February 13, March 4, April 1), both rivals
Pashinyan’s Unclear Vision for Armenian Foreign Policy
The past two months saw Armenia engaged in an extraordinary flurry of diplomatic activity. Shortly after the parliament approved the post–Velvet Revolution government’s draft foreign policy program in early February,
Armenian-Azerbaijani Talks on Karabakh Appear Positive Even as Conflict Continues to Simmer Underneath
The foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan held four-hour-long consultations in Paris, on January 16, under the auspices of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe’s (OSCE) Minsk Group.
Internal Discord in CSTO May Be Pushing Armenia to Leave Russia-Led Alliance
The issue of naming a new secretary general of the Russia-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) has become another bone of contention between supposed allies Armenia, Belarus and Kazakhstan. The
Pashinyan Formulates Armenia’s New Iran Strategy
Armenia’s interim Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan held talks with Iranian President Dr. Hassan Rouhani, on September 26, on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, in New York (Premierminister.am,
Understanding Armenia’s Syrian Gamble
Following bilateral closed-door talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, in Moscow, on September 8, Armenia’s interim Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan told journalists that Russia and Armenia would soon launch a
Pashinyan Stiffens Armenia’s Posture Toward Karabakh
With the change in power in Armenia, enabled by the so-called “Velvet Revolution,” now essentially complete, the stage is set for shifts in the country’s foreign policy. These shifts are
Moscow Worries Armenian ‘Velvet Revolution’ Could Lessen Its Leverage Over Yerevan
Armenia has been in the grips of a mass public protest movement since early April, when opposition leader and member of parliament Nikol Pashinyan launched street demonstrations and strikes in
Armenia Gears Up for ‘Future Wars’
In mid-March, the Armenian Ministry of Defense (MoD) released an 18-page strategic document entitled “2018–2024 Modernization Program for the Armenian Armed Forces.” The document lays out a framework for boosting
Armenia Annuls Zurich Protocols With Turkey, but Hopes for New Engagement
On March 1, Armenia’s National Security Council officially scrapped the Zürich Protocols, signed with Turkey on October 10, 2009, under the internationally mediated normalization and reconciliation process also known as
Is Armenia Testing a New Foreign Policy Concept?
The Armenian government expects that the long-renegotiated Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between Armenia and the European Union, which was signed on November 24, 2017, will be ratified by
Armenia Amends New Military Doctrine in Standoff With Azerbaijan Over Karabakh
At the Armenian diaspora’s Sixth Pan-Armenian Forum, held on September 18–20, Armenian Foreign Minister Eduard Nalbandian declared that Yerevan was discussing the possible handover of some occupied territories back to
Armenia and Azerbaijan’s Evolving Implicit Rivalry Over Nakhchivan
The unprecedented escalation of violence, in April 2016, on the Line of Contact in the breakaway region of Karabakh had, in part, kick-started a new round of military preparations between
Armenia and India Build Strategic Relationship
With Azerbaijan and Pakistan currently pursuing a strategic partnership (see EDM, September 28, 2016; December 15, 2016), Armenia and India have decided to step up their cooperation across several dimensions.
Armenia Pushes to Reinvigorate Its Relationship With NATO
Armenia—Russia’s closest ally in the South Caucasus—appears intent on revitalizing its partnership with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). This agenda turned explicit on February 27–28, when Armenian President Serzh
Armenia-Belarus Friction Gaining Momentum
Amidst intensifying tensions with Russia (see EDM, February 6, 14), Belarus’s relations with another erstwhile ally, Armenia, are also deteriorating. Even though, Armenia and Belarus are both members of the
Pakistan-Armenia Friction Has Intensified
The conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the Karabakh province, which has simmered since the collapse of the Soviet Union, seems to have drawn Pakistan and India into the most