Latest Articles about Transit
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Moscow Promoting Canal System Linking Turkey and Central Asia Via Russian Territory
In the 1930s, Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin considered building a canal between the Black and Caspian seas because the Volga–Don Canal lacked the depth to handle large-capacity ships. But World War II forced him to suspend and then abandon that dream. Now, President Vladimir Putin... MORE
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Fate of Zangezur Corridor Unclear Amidst Precarious Tensions Between Armenia and Azerbaijan
On May 17, Armenia’s caretaker prime minister, Nikol Pashinian, convened a Security Council meeting to discuss the latest tense developments on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border (see EDM, May 18; see below). In addressing the participants, he rejected rumors about the so-called Zangezur corridor (which would stretch... MORE
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The ‘Big Game’ Around Georgia’s Deep-Water Ports
Last March, Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili announced that his government would post a new tender for the construction of the Anaklia deep-water port (Report.ge March 31; Netgazeti, March 4). This mega-project, originally envisioned by former president Mikhail Saakashvili (in power 2004–2012), is the most... MORE
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Karabakh Conflict Takes a Dangerous Turn
In mid-May 2021, the Karabakh conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan began to take on a dangerous new dimension. In contrast to the last 25 years—when fighting between the two countries mainly took place on territory internationally recognized as Azerbaijan’s (with a notable exception last summer—see... MORE
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China Helping Russia on Northern Sea Route Now but Ready to Push Moscow Aside Later
Russia’s ever-closer economic cooperation with China may not end the way Moscow hopes. Instead of strengthening Russia as Moscow expects, it may put Beijing in a position to dominate its partner. Indeed, China’s involvement with the Northern Sea Route (NSR), a prime concern of Russian... MORE
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‘Canal War’ Breaking Out in Greater Caspian Region
Turkey’s plan to build a canal bypassing the Bosporus Strait and potentially upsetting the Montreux Convention (see EDM, February 9) along with Russia’s movement of warships from the Caspian to the Sea of Azov via the Volga–Don Canal in order to threaten Ukraine (see EDM,... MORE
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International Involvement in Infrastructure Projects in Azerbaijan’s Newly Regained Territories
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev announced earlier this year that a number of large infrastructure projects had been launched in the territories liberated from Armenian occupation as a result of the 2020 Second Karabakh War. Importantly, he added that friendly countries and partners would be involved... MORE
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Azerbaijan Embarks on Construction of Nakhchivan Railway (Part Three)
*To Read Part One, Please Click Here *To Read Part Two, Please Click Here The Zangezur corridor between mainland Azerbaijan and Nakhchivan across southern Armenia, if re-opened, will carry greater economic significance for the connected states than its geopolitical implications in the short to medium... MORE
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Moscow Struggles to Improve and Extend Siberian Railways to Preserve China Trade
Moscow has long wanted to develop its railway network east of the Urals, both to promote the development of that largely road-less region and to expand the export of raw materials like coal. Those two factors continue to be important, but they have been joined... MORE
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Azerbaijan Embarks on Construction of Nakhchivan Railway (Part One)
On February 14, President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan, during his visit to the Azerbaijani territories retaken following the Second Karabakh War (September 27–November 9, 2020), ceremonially laid the foundation for a railway that, when completed, will connect the towns of Horadiz (Fuzuli district) and Agbend... MORE