By Eldor Aripov, Director of the Institute for Strategic and Interregional Studies under the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan

Uzbekistan is on the eve of an important political event - the presidential elections in the country. This major political event was launched at the meeting of the Central Election Commission of the Republic of Uzbekistan, which took place on July 23, 2021. Today, the election campaign is in full swing, and it is taking place in a new political atmosphere. All processes are conducted openly, transparently and in accordance with the national electoral legislation and the time frames specified therein. All five parties that have nominated their candidates are actively promoting their program ideas and platforms. READ MORE

• October 25, 2021

By Benyamin POGHOSYAN, PhD, Chairman, Center for Political and Economic Strategic Studies

Whilst Georgia has long acted as an informal home for peace building initiatives between Armenia and Azerbaijan, its recent offer of its “good offices” shows a higher level of engagement.
Ever since the end of the first Karabakh war, Georgia has become a Mecca for meetings of Armenian and Azerbaijani experts, peacebuilders, and other civil society representatives. Buzz words such as Track 2 and Track 1.5 diplomacy in the context of the Karabakh conflict settlement process could be heard very often in hotel conference halls and board rooms in Tbilisi, Bakuriani, Telavi, and other places. Given the apparent obstacles in bringing Azerbaijani experts to Armenia and Armenians to Azerbaijan, many saw Georgia as an ideal place for serious meetings and discussions and long Caucasian-style dinners. READ MORE

• October 25, 2021

By Embassy of the Republic of Uzbekistan in the Kingdom of Belgium

“Global climate change is one of the most serious challenges of our times. It is also becoming a significant obstacle to sustainable development”, - said Marat Aitov, Head of department of the Institute for Strategic and Regional Studies under the President of Uzbekistan in an analytical note “Can Uzbekistan adapt to the Consequences of Global Climate Change?”, reports “Dunyo” IA correspondent. Rising global temperatures contribute to destructive extreme weather events around the world, such as sweltering heatwaves, droughts, fires, hurricanes, torrential rains, and floods.
According to the UN, over the past 5 years the average global temperature has been among the highest in the entire history of observations. World Bank projects that by 2050 216 million people in six regions will become climate refugees, including 5 million people in Central Asia. READ MORE

• October 25, 2021

By Embassy of the Republic of Uzbekistan in the Kingdom of Belgium

Today, the volunteer movement is an integral part of the social sphere, which provides gratuitous assistance to people in difficult life situations. Uzbekistan is at the stage of active reforms. Large-scale transformations open new opportunities for solving actual socio-economic, socio-political, cultural, and humanitarian problems. One of the priority directions of development of Uzbekistan, in addition to improving state and social construction, ensuring the rule of law, and reforming the judicial and legal system, developing and liberalizing the economy, ensuring security, interethnic harmony and religious tolerance, implementing a balanced, mutually beneficial and constructive foreign policy, is the development of the social sphere. READ MORE

• October 25, 2021

By Doniyor Turaev, Deputy Director of the Legislation and Parliamentary Research Institute under the Oliy Majlis of the Republic of Uzbekistan

Currently, systematic work is under way in Uzbekistan to implement the provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Children, the legal and institutional framework for protecting the rights and interests of children is improving. As the international experience shows, today, more than twenty countries have a specialized and independent institution – the Ombudsman for Children. The first office of Ombudsman for Children was established in Norway in 1981. By the beginning of the 21st century, many countries had significantly intensified their work to protect the rights of the child and create some special authorized institutions in this area, and this was due to the need to better ensure the implementation of obligations under the Convention on the Rights of the Child. READ MORE

• October 25, 2021

By Hayk KOTANJIAN, Lieutenant General (Ret.), D.Sc., Professor of Political Science of the RA, RF, USA (state studies-strategic security studies), Full Member of the Academy of Military Sciences of the RF

In the wake of the 44-day war in 2020, an unprecedented escalation of the process of delimitation and demarcation of the Armenian-Azerbaijani borders has been launched. This was done contrary to the principles and procedure for border delimitation and demarcation recommended by the OSCE Secretariat. The unparalleled pressure on the Armenian population from Karabakh was accompanied by subsequent attempts to undermine the settlement process under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairmanship. Among the arguments substantiating claims to include Nagorno-Karabakh in Azerbaijan, Baku authorities refer to the Azerbaijani-language toponymy, which allegedly has a long history. READ MORE

• October 13, 2021

By Fuad Shahbazov, Baku-based independent regional security and defence analyst

In the period immediately after the 44-day Karabakh war, Baku-Tehran relations remained on the level of pragmatic co-operation, until the new conservative political establishment ascended to power in Iran. Since then, Tehran’s rhetoric against Azerbaijan has shifted from that of “partnership” to open threats that explicitly neglect the partnership atmosphere. Relations between Baku and Tehran have always been unstable, particularly at the beginning of the 2000s. However, they rekindled when both countries became engaged in regional infrastructure and transit projects. READ MORE

• October 13, 2021

By Benyamin POGHOSYAN, PhD, Chairman, Center for Political and Economic Strategic Studies

For 30 years, Iran has adopted a cautious approach to developments in the South Caucasus, wary of the risk of encirclement. Iran's current military drills on the border with Azerbaijan are meant to send a signal that Tehran has its red lines too.
Since the collapse of the Soviet Union 30 years ago, Iran has carefully followed the developments in the South Caucasus. The strategic goal of Iran was not to allow the region to be a launchpad for the US or Israeli-initiated anti-Iranian activities. Due to the constant US pressure, Iran could not significantly increase its influence in the South Caucasus and directly compete with the US. Meanwhile, the US and Israel were not the only sources of concern for Iran. Turkey's intentions to increase its influence in the South Caucasus through the establishment of the Turkey–Georgia–Azerbaijan strategic partnership was another source of concern. READ MORE

• October 11, 2021