Since the collapse of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR) in 1991, a perpetual high priority for the Russian Federation has been to maintain or extend Moscow’s influence over the other former Soviet republics as far as possible, particularly in the military sphere. This... MORE

On February 20, former interior minister (2004–2012) and former prime minister (2012) Vano Merabishvili was released from prison in Tbilisi, where he spent six years and nine months in solitary confinement (Interpressnews February 20). Merabishvili—widely known as the “Georgian strongman” during his time in government... MORE

On February 19–22, Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev paid a historic state visit to Rome, Italy (Azertag, February 19). Before this latest trip, the Azerbaijani leader had made three official and two working visits to Italy, but a state visit (the highest-level visit possible in inter-state... MORE

The southwestern Russian Republic of Kalmykia has long hoped to become a major player on the Caspian, which it argues could be achievable with the construction of a new port on that inland sea along with a new canal from there to the Sea of... MORE

On February 10, the authorities jailed Giorgi “Gigi” Ugulava, the secretary general of the opposition party European Georgia (EG), on charges of allegedly embezzling some $17 million while serving as mayor of Tbilisi (2005–2013). Ugulava’s arrest undermined the planned next round of Western-mediated talks between... MORE

The United States’ sanctions against Iran and the unwillingness of most Caspian littoral states to challenge them have sent Tehran’s maritime trade in this sea plummeting over the last two years, reducing its non-petroleum component by half (Financial Tribune, May 27, 2019). But that has... MORE

In the northwestern Syrian province of Idlib, the Russian Armed Forces—mainly via their “proxy,” Bashar al-Assad’s Syrian Arab Army—are confronting Turkish military units (see EDM, January 30, February 18), putting severe strains on the Moscow-Ankara relationship. But Russian military activities along Turkey’s borders are not... MORE

At this year’s World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev told the Russian news agency RIA Novosti that transporting Russian natural gas via the Trans-Anatolian Pipeline (TANAP) is technically possible but that Azerbaijan has never received an official proposal for such... MORE

In 2019, Armenia’s economic situation markedly improved, registering GDP growth of 6.5 percent, a stable financial system, upgraded credit ratings, higher budget revenues and reduced public debt (Emerging Europe, December 30, 2019). According to a poll conducted in September and October by the International Republican... MORE

From Russia’s perspective, the conflicts it has itself instigated in the greater Black Sea region are strictly separate cases. Moscow regards the conflicts over Ukraine’s Crimea and Georgia’s Abkhazia and South Ossetia as settled and closed. By contrast, Russia seeks political settlements to the active... MORE