Executive Summary: The U.S.-brokered Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP), which would connect Azerbaijan to its Nakhchivan exclave through Armenia, has accelerated Armenia–Azerbaijan normalization but triggered domestic backlash in Armenia and concern from Iran and Russia.  TRIPP sovereignty concerns and uncertainty over implementation... MORE

Executive Summary: Global warming, increased human use, and declines in the flow of water from rivers that feed the Caspian Sea are threatening its viability. Food production from the sea is declining, and the Caspian’s ports and sea lanes are silting up, limiting north–south and... MORE

Executive Summary: China Railway Container Transport Corp. Ltd, on August 7, joined the Middle Corridor Multimodal Ltd, a joint railway venture between Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Georgia, to facilitate the development of the Middle Corridor. Progress on the Zangezur Corridor, rebranded as Trump Route for International... MORE

Executive Summary: Following the meeting between Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev at the White House on August 8, there are hopes that Yerevan and Baku are close to signing a long-anticipated peace treaty. Armenia and Türkiye have been making progress... MORE

Executive Summary: Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev’s visit to Beijing for the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit on August 31–September 1 emphasizes Baku’s recent push for the formation of a multivector diplomatic position. Baku seeks deeper SCO engagement to boost the Middle Corridor, but India appears... MORE

Executive Summary: The August 8 U.S.-mediated meeting between Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan launched the Trump Route for International Peace and Prosperity (TRIPP), granting Azerbaijan direct land access to its Nakhchivan exclave via Armenian territory and symbolically sidestepping disputed corridor... MORE

Executive Summary: Azerbaijan has pursued proactive diplomacy to strengthen its role as a transit hub since the beginning of Russia’s war against Ukraine in 2022, especially with the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Transit through Azerbaijan offers a sanction-free, resilient, and stable environment to facilitate... MORE

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: 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