Baku, Azerbaijan, Nov. 11
By Anakhanum Hidayatova – Trend:
The US is likely to maintain its South Caucasus strategy by working with Russia and Turkey to further resolve issues in the region, the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in particular, Theodore Karasik, senior advisor at Gulf State Analytics, told Trend Nov. 11.
“The transition between [the US] administrations is not likely to result in major changes to American policy,” Karasik stated.
“Trump’s policy is the exact same policy articulated by the Obama administration in its last months in office where Washington literally ceded the South Caucasus to Moscow and Ankara,” he explained.
Meanwhile, said Karasik, it is important to remember that the Trump administration is looking for "bargain deals" with energy remaining the key focus.
“There is one South Caucasus country – Georgia – that may benefit from the Trump administration,” Karasik said.
This is due to Trump's earlier visits to that country, the expert added.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations.
Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.