Tuesday, November 10, 2020

An end to the Armenia-Azerbaijan war creates a new geopolitical landscape

The most recent Armenia-Azerbaijan war over the Nagorno-Karabakh region has ended--leaving Russia and Turkey more powerful in the region than ever before. Turkey's interest in the war has been clear from the start--they contracted rebel fighters in Azerbaijan and sold them extremely advantageous drone technology. Additionally, Azerbaijan's capture of Shusha (otherwise known as Shushi) and other territory has given Turkey a direct land route to mainland Azerbaijan, which is good for Turkish trade among other things. 

However, Russia has also become a major power player in the region. Before, France, the US, and Russia were all in a group called OSCE Minsk Group that negotiated the first ceasefire in 1994. However, since this war has not been a priority for the US government lately, Russia was the only major power to broker peace. As a result, Russia has gained immense power in the region, as they are deploying 2,000 peacekeeping forces in the area for the next five years. Now, Armenia and Azerbaijan are part of a larger political contest between Turkey and Russia, affecting the region as a whole.

By, Claire Mikulcik

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/nov/10/nagorno-karabakh-peace-deal-turkey-russia-reshapes-regional-geopolitics


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