Latest Articles about South Caucasus
Ankara Links Karabakh Settlement to Rapprochement with Yerevan
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has clearly reaffirmed the linkage between normalization of Turkish-Armenian relations and early substantial progress toward resolution of the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict. Ankara defines such progress as withdrawal of Armenian troops from occupied districts of Azerbaijan beyond Upper Karabakh, pending a... MORE
Putin, Tymoshenko Agree on Gas and Deride Yushchenko, Saakashvili
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart Yulia Tymoshenko met in Yalta on November 19 and reached a number of agreements, confirming once again that their relationship is of a special character. Putin reiterated that Naftohaz Ukrainy, the debt-ridden state-controlled oil and gas... MORE
Turkish Diplomacy Reshapes the Armenian Political Landscape
The dramatic rapprochement with Turkey is having profound implications for Armenia’s domestic political scene and, in particular, among its diverse and volatile opposition. The main opposition player, Levon Ter-Petrosian, has defended President Serzh Sargsyan against what he sees as unjustified nationalist criticism and essentially offered... MORE
Azerbaijan Accelerates Gas Export Diversification Efforts
Gas production in Azerbaijan is set to reach 30 billion cubic meters (bcm) annually by 2013 from currently operating fields (Trend Capital, November 13). Over and above that level, the second phase of production at the Shah Deniz field is projected to add another 16... MORE
Azerbaijan Seeks Alternative Gas Export Routes: Sending a Signal to Ankara
“We are interested in exporting our resources through different routes,” Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev stated during his visit to Bulgaria on November 13 (AZTV). On the same day, he paid a short working visit to Sofia to meet his counterpart Georgi Parvanov and to sign... MORE
Georgia Considers Opening its Border with Russia
On November 13, Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili convened yet another session of his country’s National Security Council (NSC) with the participation of major parliamentary and non-parliamentary opposition parties. Boycotted by radical politicians, but highly appreciated by moderates, as a mechanism to conduct dialogue with the... MORE
Azerbaijan Considers Georgia-Black Sea-Bulgaria Route for Compressed Natural Gas to Europe
On November 13 in Sofia, Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev and his Bulgarian counterpart Giorgi Purvanov witnessed the signing of agreements of intent on the transportation of Azerbaijani gas to Bulgaria and onward to Europe. The agreements’ centerpiece concerns transportation of compressed natural gas (CNG) from... MORE
Jamestown Blog: Kidnapping and Extortion: Russia’s Modus Operandi in Georgia
Georgians were recently shocked when they learned of more kidnappings of ethnic Georgians, this time from the village of Tirdznisi near the Russian-occupied Tskhinvali region.Kidnapping has been a usual Russian practice ever since Russia invaded Georgia in August 2008 and seized nearly 20 percent of... MORE
Russia Casts a Wary Eye on Deepening U.S.-Georgia Cooperation
On October 30, Russia’s Permanent Representative to NATO, Dmitry Rogozin, gave an interview to Ekho Moskvy Radio, in which he severely criticized America’s Georgia policy. Quoted by most of Russia’s news agencies, Rogozin said: “No one has abandoned the idea to use Georgia as a... MORE
Turkish-Azerbaijani “Cold War:” Moscow Benefits from Washington’s Indecisiveness
Recent weeks have seen unprecedented and potentially far reaching damage to the Turkish-Azerbaijani strategic partnership. Ever since Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) announced its intension to normalize relations with Azerbaijan’s arch-rival Armenia, the relationship between Ankara and Baku has cooled. The Azerbaijani leadership... MORE