Submission Statement: “A series of negative trends are reversing decades of democratic advance.” There is a troubling rise of authoritarianism in the South Caucasus, highlighted by internal dynamics and external pressures—particularly from Russia and a distracted West. Georgia’s ruling party has increasingly adopted illiberal measures following contested elections, while Azerbaijan suppresses independent media and political dissent. Armenia faces similar risks of authoritarianism as it navigates a landscape dominated by repressive neighboring regimes. Transatlantic unity is needed to reverse a decline in democratic governance across the region.
I don’t know how long Aliyev has left after dealing with the Nagorno-Karabakh problem and taking it completely. Might not have been the best move for Aliyev. Keeping it as a talking point and a reason to keep him in power might have been better. Now it has been dealt with attention might turn to other problems in the country like inequality or why their GDP per capita is lower than that of Armenia, a nation that doesn’t have the oil production they do. What’s more, with oil prices falling and their oil reserves falling there could be a real collapose in their ecomomy which is made up largely by their oil exports. They have a few years left of a stable economy to push their Zangezur Corridor agenda and provocations against Armenia to keep their population in check.
2 comments
Submission Statement: “A series of negative trends are reversing decades of democratic advance.” There is a troubling rise of authoritarianism in the South Caucasus, highlighted by internal dynamics and external pressures—particularly from Russia and a distracted West. Georgia’s ruling party has increasingly adopted illiberal measures following contested elections, while Azerbaijan suppresses independent media and political dissent. Armenia faces similar risks of authoritarianism as it navigates a landscape dominated by repressive neighboring regimes. Transatlantic unity is needed to reverse a decline in democratic governance across the region.
I don’t know how long Aliyev has left after dealing with the Nagorno-Karabakh problem and taking it completely. Might not have been the best move for Aliyev. Keeping it as a talking point and a reason to keep him in power might have been better. Now it has been dealt with attention might turn to other problems in the country like inequality or why their GDP per capita is lower than that of Armenia, a nation that doesn’t have the oil production they do. What’s more, with oil prices falling and their oil reserves falling there could be a real collapose in their ecomomy which is made up largely by their oil exports. They have a few years left of a stable economy to push their Zangezur Corridor agenda and provocations against Armenia to keep their population in check.
Comments are closed.