Latest Articles about South Caucasus
Coronavirus Pandemic Provides Surprising Momentum to Trans-Eurasian Rail Transportation
The COVID-19 pandemic generated many challenges for trans-Eurasian transportation corridors as borders were shut down, factories closed, and supply chains thrown into disarray. The disease outbreak and subsequent quarantine conditions did, however, offer new opportunities to railway container transportation along the Trans-Caspian route, also known... MORE
For First Time in History, Georgia May Come Under US Sanctions
The United States Congress may suspend around 15 percent of US financial assistance to Georgia, according to the draft Fiscal Year 2021 State and Foreign Operations Funding bill recently approved by the US House Appropriations Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs. The funding... MORE
Turkey Makes Strides in Diversifying Its Natural Gas Imports
For two months in a row this past spring, during March and April, Azerbaijan surpassed Russia in delivering natural gas supplies to Turkey (Hellenic Shipping News, June 2). At the same time, Turkey’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports have also been skyrocketing, with LNG suppliers... MORE
Where Does the TAP Gas Pipeline Project Stand to Date? The View From Baku
On June 9, the press service of the Trans-Adriatic Gas Pipeline (TAP) consortium announced that construction of the 105-kilometer offshore segment of TAP, which will transport Azerbaijani natural gas to Europe, had been completed. This latest development phase comprised the offshore deployment of 36-inch pipes... MORE
Iran Completes Controversial Hydropower Project on Aras River
In early May 2020, media reports highlighted the construction of a large hydropower system composed of the Khudafarin and Qiz Qalasi (Maiden Tower) hydropower plants as well as hydro junctions and related facilities and bridges on the Aras River, which follows part of the border... MORE
Changes in the Separatist Abkhazian Government and Implications for Relations With Tbilisi
At a June 2 meeting with members of the “parliament” of Abkhazia, the secessionist Georgian region’s newly elected “president,” Aslan Bzhania, reported that, during his first visit to Moscow (May 5) (Ekho Kavkaza, May 5), he had secured additional Russian funds to fill local budgetary... MORE
Georgia’s Constitutional Reform Under Threat
On June 7, Georgia kicked off a public discussion on the adoption of new constitutional amendments. This reform may prove to be the most important change to the country’s constitution since 1990, when Georgia held its first democratic multi-party elections. The proposed amendments will allow... MORE
China Could Ultimately Displace Western Majors as Key Player in Caspian Oil Fields
Twenty-six years ago, on September 20, 1994, Azerbaijan signed an accord with a consortium of ten international oil companies to develop its fields on the Caspian Shelf, an event that both Baku and the West described as “the deal of the century.” The agreement linked... MORE
Politics Around COVID-19 Pandemic Undermine Relations Between Georgia and Armenia
On May 22, Armenian Health Minister Arsen Torosyan accused Georgia of hiding true statistics about the numbers of its people infected with the novel coronavirus and boasted that his country’s anti-epidemiological system was far superior to the Georgian one (Arminfo.info, May 22). His remarks sparked... MORE
With Karabakh Conflict Negotiations Deadlocked, Regional Players Heighten Military Rhetoric
The month of May is important from the perspective of the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict because it marks the anniversaries of both the occupation of Azerbaijan’s Shusha city and Lachin districts (rayons) as well as the later signing of the “ceasefire agreement”—the terms of which are still... MORE