Executive Summary: Relations between Russia and Azerbaijan have degenerated over the past several months, but until recently, the two countries aimed to keep the crisis under control. Moscow’s aggressive rhetoric regarding Baku has turned into action, including the bombing of Azerbaijani oil depots in Ukraine.... MORE

Executive Summary: According to a recent study by the Institute for Development of Freedom of Information (IDFI), re-exports of cars from Georgia are at a historic high, with light vehicles worth $1.2 billion exported in the first six months of 2025. Since 2021, car re-exports... MORE

Executive Summary: The recent peace declaration between Armenia and Azerbaijan on August 8—mediated by the United States—has stirred great interest in Georgia, as it signals an increased Western presence in the South Caucasus. The ruling Georgian Dream party has sought to convince the West that,... MORE

The Caspian Sea, once considered a “Russian lake,” is becoming a more multipolar space. Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan have expanded their navies, built new security accords with each other, and increased cooperation with Türkiye. Russia has responded with naval cooperation with Iran, but this alliance... MORE

Three decades of conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan have consumed most of their attention on both domestic initiatives and international relations. The unfolding peace process, therefore, has the potential to dramatically change political developments in the South Caucasus. Direct talks over the past two years... MORE

Executive Summary: Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, and U.S. President Donald Trump signed a seven-point joint pledge declaring their intention to pursue peace between Azerbaijan and Armenia during an August 8 meeting at the White House.  During the same trip, the... MORE

Executive Summary: Tensions linger between Armenia and Azerbaijan over a proposed transit route, better known to many as the Zangezur Corridor, through Armenia that would restore a Soviet-era connection between Azerbaijan and its exclave of Nakhchivan. Reports alleging that the United States had proposed that... MORE

Executive Summary: A series of investigations and arrests across Eurasia has revealed a rise in international call center fraud operations, underscoring the increasingly transnational nature of cybercrime in the region. Russian-language cybercrime has historically avoided targeting Russia or members of the Commonwealth of Independent States,... MORE

Executive Summary: Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan met in Abu Dhabi on July 10 for their first direct bilateral talks without mediators. Discussions included renewed momentum on the development of the Zangezur Corridor. Both Baku and Yerevan agreed on a... MORE

Executive Summary: Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine aimed to reassert dominance over the former Soviet space, but Ukraine’s resistance and sustained Western support have instead weakened Moscow’s influence in the region. Moscow’s war against Ukraine has led the former Soviet republics to pursue... MORE