Executive Summary: Russian President Vladimir Putin has been unwilling to compromise to reach peace, reaffirming maximalist demands and committing to a risky strategy of provoking the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), hoping to demonstrate the alliance’s weakness to justify rising costs of his war against... 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: Moscow is using drone incursions in Romania and Poland to test the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s (NATO’s) readiness and resolve, seeking to highlight divisions over how to respond to this new form of aggression. Moscow’s simultaneous moves in Svalbard (Spitzbergen), a Norwegian archipelago... 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: India’s increased economic cooperation with Russia since 2022, despite Western sanctions, has provided the Russian military-industrial complex with critical technological and financial support. India has helped Russia evade Western sanctions by providing Moscow with Nvidia artificial intelligence (AI) chips, octogen, and Swiss-made precision... 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 August 8 summit between the Armenian and Azerbaijani leaders in Washington, D.C., with mediation by U.S. President Donald Trump, reached a deal on the Zangezur Corridor, envisioning an “unimpeded” transit route through Armenia to Azerbaijan’s Nakhchivan exclave. Domestic opposition in Armenia has... MORE

Executive Summary: The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) is an increasingly important vehicle through which the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) seeks to drive changes to the international system. This year’s summit focused on seizing the current moment to shape rules and standards in emerging frontiers, such... 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