Conflicts

European Union Mission in Armenia Marks First Anniversary

29/02/2024 -  Onnik James Krikorian

For a year, the European Union Mission in Armenia (EUMA) has been deployed on the border with Azerbaijan, which it patrols regularly: a measure considered necessary by Yerevan - which fears a new conflict - but viewed with suspicion by Baku

Armed conflict of the Dniester, thirty years later

07/02/2024 -  Giorgio Comai

A newly-published book explores the circumstances around the violence that accompanied Transnistria’s de facto secession from Moldova. Three decades later, finding new answers to old conundrums is key to preventing ongoing tensions from escalating

Armenia and Azerbaijan slow motion negotiations

05/02/2024 -  Onnik James Krikorian

The attempts of Armenia and Azerbaijan to normalize their bilateral relations after the Azerbaijani conquest of Nagorno Karabakh continue in an anemic and controversial manner. A process that could lead Yerevan to change its constitution

Has Transnistria just entered its last year with Russia’s gas subsidy?

18/01/2024 -  Giorgio Comai

A large share of Transnistria’s economy, including most of its budget, depends on a structural subsidy it receives from Russia in the form of free gas. As Ukraine has promised to stop all Russian pipelines going through its territory by the end of 2024, how will Transnistria cope?

Azerbaijan, tackling the problem of landmines and unexploded ordnance

27/12/2023 -  Onnik James Krikorian

The regions around Nagorno Karabakh are contaminated with thousands of landmines and unexploded ordnance (UXO). An urgent matter, but demining takes a long time

Armenia and Azerbaijan, a rare declaration rekindles hopes for peace

12/12/2023 -  Onnik James Krikorian

Armenia and Azerbaijan issued a late-night joint statement that surprised even the most seasoned of commentators. Though it remains unclear whether this could be a long-awaited breakthrough in negotiations, the international community was united in welcoming the move

Armenia and Azerbaijan, border commissions meet amid stalemate

01/12/2023 -  Onnik James Krikorian

As negotiations between Armenia and Azerbaijan appear to have stalled, border commissions from both sides met on 30 November. However, it remains unclear whether the meeting was nothing more than symbolic

Resolute efforts on dealing with the violent past are required in the region of the former Yugoslavia

29/11/2023

“The failure to fully deal with wartime atrocities and the root causes of conflicts in the 1990s continues to have devastating consequences on respect for human rights, the rule of law and social cohesion in the region”, said Dunja Mijatović, the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, while releasing a report on the state of play of transitional justice efforts in the countries of the former Yugoslavia

Cyprus’ Plan for a Maritime Humanitarian Aid Corridor to Gaza

21/11/2023 -  Mary Drosopoulos

While the international community is facing the challenge of getting humanitarian aid to Gaza amid restrictions in place, Cyprus has proposed the creation of a maritime corridor to reach civilians in need. Despite the technical challenges lying in its implementation, EU leaders seem to be supportive of this plan

Nagorno Karabakh, surviving war

09/11/2023 -  Armine Avetisyan Yerevan

With the blitzkrieg of last September, Armenian Nagorno Karabakh ceased to exist, and tens of thousands of people hastily abandoned it to move to Armenia, where a future full of uncertainty awaits them

Armenian, Azerbaijani and Georgian Prime Ministers address Tbilisi Silk Road Forum

03/11/2023 -  Onnik James Krikorian

In recent days, Georgia once again hosted the Tbilisi Silk Road Forum, an event with an economic focus. What is new this year is that for the first time an Armenian leader spoke at such a high-level event in Tbilisi, and high-level officials from all three South Caucasus countries were also on the same stage

Turkey: Echoes of Gaza

31/10/2023 -  Kenan Behzat Sharpe

Turkish politics has always been extremely sensitive to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The Hamas attack on Israel and the subsequent Israeli military operation in Gaza have reopened debate and conflict in Turkey too

Brussels Armenia-Azerbaijan Talks Canceled As Regional Meetings Kick Off

27/10/2023 -  Onnik James Krikorian

After the meeting between the two Caucasian leaders at the Granada summit on 5 October fell through, there has been no other EU-facilitated meeting. To the surprise of many, however, regional talks began in Georgia and Iran. Brussels does not give up and pushes for a meeting between Aliyev, Pashinyan and Michel

Ukraine’s green transition to freedom

17/10/2023 -  Marilen Martin

The green transition is one of the greatest challenges of our time. Ukraine, however, not only has to decarbonize, but must do so amidst a war. Despite it, the country is already rebuilding and discussions about greening the economy are vivid

Hopes Dashed for Armenia-Azerbaijan Meeting in Granada

09/10/2023 -  Onnik James Krikorian

No meeting between the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan at the Granada summit on 5 October. After the use of arms by the Azerbaijani side, which decreed the end of Nagorno Karabakh as an autonomous entity, various questions still remain open

Nagorno Karabakh, dissolution and new challenges ahead

05/10/2023 -  Onnik James Krikorian

Last week, over 100,000 ethnic Armenians from the breakaway region of Nagorno Karabakh flooded into Armenia while the de facto authorities dissolved the entity, effective at the beginning of next year. Meanwhile, the displaced face the challenges of integration into Armenia and, for some, a possible return to Azerbaijan

Fleeing from Nagorno Karabakh

On September 19, Azerbaijan launched a military attack in Nagorno-Karabakh, changing the fate of thousands of people in just a few hours. Over 80 thousand people have already left the region. From our correspondent in Yerevan, Armine Avetisyan, some shots from one of the registration centre to enter Armenia

Karabakh: following ceasefire, Armenia and Azerbaijan prepare for talks

27/09/2023 -  Onnik James Krikorian

Following the 20 September ceasefire agreement between Baku and the de facto authorities of the former Nagorno Karabakh Autonomous Oblast (NKAO), now Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev are expected to meet for talks that will also involve France, Germany, and the European Council

Karabakh agrees to integration talks with Azerbaijan

20/09/2023 -  Onnik James Krikorian

Following a landmine incident on its territory, and with multiple negotiating tracks under increasing risk of collapse, Azerbaijan appears to have wrestled back control of its breakaway Karabakh region

De facto Karabakh President resigns, replacement appointed

12/09/2023 -  Onnik James Krikorian

The resignation of Arayik Harutyunyan and the change of leadership in Nagorno Karabakh open a new phase of uncertainty in the region and for the future of relations between Karabakh and Azerbaijan

Ukraine's wildfires surge amidst war

07/08/2023 -  Marilen Martin

Russia’s full-scale war against Ukraine led to a surge in forest and rural fires across the country. Combating them is all the more difficult amidst the war that binds all resources and unexploded mines that contaminate the territory

Armenia and Azerbaijan at Odds Again on Key Highway After EU-Facilitated Talks

01/08/2023 -  Onnik James Krikorian Tbilisi

Despite recent diplomatic meetings Azerbaijan and Armenia are once again in a stalemate over the Lachin corridor, a 5km highway linking Armenia to Nagorno Karabakh. The blockade of this corridor by Azerbaijan is putting the inhabitants of Nagorno Karabakh in difficulty

Ukraine should reconsider its male travel ban

21/07/2023 -  Giorgio Comai

It is a violation of human rights, it is unnecessary, it forces unbearable decisions on families, and creates new vulnerabilities. As it renews its martial and mobilization laws in August, Ukraine should reconsider its male travel ban

Meeting between Armenia and Azerbaijan: little progress for Nagorno Karabakh

05/07/2023 -  Onnik James Krikorian

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Armenia and Azerbaijan made further progress towards a peace deal in the three-day US-hosted talks in late June, yet tensions persist in the disputed territory of Nagorno Karabakh

Aleksandra Godfroid: Serbian media and the war in Ukraine

27/06/2023 -  Francesco Martino Belgrade

In Serbia, local media play a central role in shaping the narrative of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. We talked about it with Aleksandra Godfroid, journalist of the N1 TV network

Russian invasion of Ukraine, the impact on Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina

19/06/2023

What is the impact over the Western Balkans of the Russian invasion of Ukraine? What are the possibel future scenarios in Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina? Analysts, activists and area experts discussed it in a webinar organized by OBCT and CeSPI

Sasha Seregina: protesting in Serbia against the Russian invasion of Ukraine

15/06/2023 -  Francesco Martino Belgrade

When the Russian invasion of Ukraine began, a segment of Serbian society - traditionally pro-Russian - took to the streets to protest against the Kremlin. Among the first demonstrators there were many Russian citizens, including Sasha Seregina. We interviewed her

Edina Bećirević, the divisions of Bosnia Herzegovina and the paradox of Ukraine

12/06/2023 -  Francesco Martino Sarajevo

The start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, paradoxically, may have avoided a new open confrontation in Bosnia and Herzegovina. This is one of the reflections by Edina Bećirević, a professor at the University of Sarajevo and an expert on Russian influence in the Western Balkans. An interview

Armenia and Azerbaijan, new talks in Moscow, Chişinău, and Ankara

06/06/2023 -  Onnik James Krikorian

A tight series of talks and meetings attended by Nikol Pashinyan, prime minister of Armenia and Ilham Aliyev, president of Azerbaijan, took place in various locations, from Moscow to Chişinău and even in Ankara. The goal was to seek the normalisation of relations between Yerevan and Baku

Serbia and Ukraine, a forgotten friendship

23/05/2023 -  Massimo Moratti Belgrade

Serbia and Ukraine used to have close geopolitical positions, but such friendship has been jeopardised by the Russian invasion of Ukraine. A study tries to take stock of the bilateral relations between Kyiv and Belgrade. We interviewed author Kateryna Shymkevych