Security Trends in the Arctic Region and their Impact on Contemporary World Politics By Nika Chitadze, PhD, Director, Center for International Studies, International Black Sea University, Tbilisi
The melting of the Arctic ice cap in combination with developments elsewhere concerning future of energy and military security are creating scenarios that range from low level friction to potential conflict between the Arctic littoral states. Much attention has been devoted to maritime boundary disputes involving the Arctic states: Canada, Denmark, Norway, Russia, and the US. In addition to this, the emerging interest of non-Arctic states in shipping, polar research and non-living resources exploitation also adds uncertain elements to the Arctic geopolitical development. READ MORE
- EGF Editor |
Published on EGF: 23.02.2019
| Security
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US-Turkish Relations in Crisis By Eugene Kogan, Tbilisi-based defence and security expert
In recent years, Turkish President Erdogan has turned his country towards the East. In so doing, he is risking a break with his NATO allies in the West.
The failed coup in Turkey on 15 July 2016 has been a turning point in US-Turkey relations. The coup has left many questions from US officials unanswered by their Turkish counterparts. In addition, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's request for the extradition of US-born Muslim cleric Fethullah Gulen, whom Erdogan called the head behind the coup, was repeatedly rejected by the US Department of Justice because of insufficient evidence. This point was disputed by Turkish officials who claimed that they had provided sufficient evidence of Gulen's complicity in the coup. READ MORE
- EGF Editor |
Published on EGF: 18.02.2019
| External Relations
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Non-alignment Policy as a Principle of Shaping the National Security of Azerbaijan By professor Sadi Sadiyev Saleh, War College of the Armed Forces, Republic of Azerbaijan
The emergence of a bipolar world and the formation of two military blocks (NATO and the Warsaw Pact) after the Second World War ushered in an intense rivalry between different countries. Finding an effective grand strategy to survive between two hostile powers inevitably requires a balanced policy. In this context, the underdeveloped countries felt the need to join efforts for the common defence of their interests, to strengthen their independence and sovereignty and to express a strong commitment for peace by declaring themselves as “non-aligned” from either of the two nascent military blocks. READ MORE
- EGF Editor |
Published on EGF: 14.02.2019
| Security
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Armenian-Azerbaijani Talks on Karabakh Appear Positive Even as Conflict Continues to Simmer Underneath By Eduard Abrahamyan, Wider Black Sea & Central Asia regional security analyst
The foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan held four-hour-long consultations in Paris, on January 16, under the auspices of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe’s (OSCE) Minsk Group. The joint statement to come out of the meeting included telling language. In particular, the two sides acknowledged the need for “concrete measures to prepare the populations for peace”. READ MORE
- EGF Editor |
Published on EGF: 14.02.2019
| Security
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Can Major non-NATO Ally Status Temporarily Solve Georgia’s Security Dilemma? By Eduard Abrahamyan, Wider Black Sea & Central Asia regional security analyst
Despite almost two decades of fanfare regarding Georgia’s pursuit to join NATO, the North Atlantic Alliance has yet to adopt a common position on the concrete timeframe of Georgia’s eventual membership. Given NATO’s protracted, uneven handling of Georgia’s enrolment process, might Georgia be better off seeking closer bilateral relations with the United States? READ MORE
- EGF Editor |
Published on EGF: 07.02.2019
| Security
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Will the Syrian Kurds Strike a Deal with Moscow?
By Fuad Shahbazov, Baku-based independent regional security and defence analyst
President Donald Trump’s announcement at the end of 2018 that he would withdraw U.S. troops from Syria came as a surprise to all parties involved, sparking particular concerns among America’s Syrian Kurdish allies. The move followed President Trump’s declaration of victory over ISIS after a four-year military campaign fighting alongside Syrian Kurdish forces. This sudden and unexpected decision has been widely criticized not only by allies but also inside the White House, with many analysts arguing that the U.S. withdrawal will expose the Syrian Kurds to an attack by Turkey READ MORE
- EGF Editor |
Published on EGF: 06.02.2019
| External Relations
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Withdrawal of the US Troops from Syria and its Impact on the Security Environment in the Black Sea Region By Nika Chitadze, PhD, Director, Center for International Studies, International Black Sea University, Tbilisi
As it is known, US President Donald Trump recently adopted a decision on the withdrawal of about two thousands American military serviceman from Syria. It is possible that one of the main purposes of the American contingent’s withdrawal is the restoration of closer relations between USA and Turkey and the prevention of strengthening cooperation between Moscow and Ankara. READ MORE
- EGF Editor |
Published on EGF: 28.01.2019
| Security
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Uncertainties and Weaknesses in International Security Around the Black Sea Region By Eugene Kogan, Tbilisi-based defence and security expert
It can be ascertained that until the Russian illegal annexation of Crimea, in March 2014, the Black Sea Region was perceived as a region with certain problems, but certainly not of a military nature. As a result, this region was neither high on the international community agenda nor on the radar screen of the NATO member states, and that despite membership of Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey in NATO. Furthermore, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his government thought back in 2014 that they were capable to handle President Vladimir Putin’s Russia single-handed, NATO assistance was not required, and non-NATO members such as Georgia and Ukraine should not be involved. READ MORE
- EGF Editor |
Published on EGF: 24.01.2019
| Security
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America's Offshore Balancing in Action By Benyamin Poghosyan, PhD, Executive Director, Political Science Association of Armenia
US President Donald J. Trump recent decision to withdraw American forces from Syria caught everyone by surprise: the Washington establishment, foreign policy pundits and everyone else who follow the Middle East Geopolitics. Given the top priority which President Trump has attached to the containment of Iran and curbing its activities in the Middle East, many believed that US presence in Syria should have been either expanded or at least stayed the same. READ MORE
- EGF Editor |
Published on EGF: 28.12.2018
| External Relations
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Bolton's Caucasian Tour and Russia's Reaction By Eduard Abrahamyan, Wider Black Sea & Central Asia regional security analyst
On October 24-26, a U.S. State Department delegation headed by National Security Adviser Ambassador John Bolton visited the South Caucasian republics after talks in Moscow. The delegation’s visit to Azerbaijan, Armenia and Georgia was immediately dubbed a reinvigoration of U.S. policy towards the Caucasus and a pragmatic reengagement with the conflicted region. Bolton appeared to refine the evolving U.S. priorities with each country, categorizing them in accordance with political capabilities, shared interests and the roles that Georgia, Azerbaijan and Armenia respectively seek in relations with the West. The visit, however, caused an angry reaction from Moscow, especially given the issues Bolton raised in Yerevan. READ MORE
- EGF Editor |
Published on EGF: 21.12.2018
| External Relations
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