The Caucasus: Regional Security Crossroads at the Beginning of 2024

The policies of Azerbaijan, Georgia and Armenia, as well as their foreign policy orientations, play a key role in shaping regional security and stability in the region. The problem is that the South Caucasus has never been a unified geopolitical space throughout its modern history.

Hungarian Irredentism in Transcarpathia

At this point, it appears that tensions between Ukraine and Hungary related to the situation of the Hungarian ethnic minority in Transcarpathia are by no means over. It seems that it could be significantly eased if Ukraine is accepted by the EU with the opening of borders and harmonization of Ukrainian legislation with EU norms concerning the rights of linguistic and ethnic minorities.

Complex Equation: Positions of Central Asian States and Societies in the Gaza Conflict

Israel is perceived as an important part of the Western, American-centric world. Consequently, relations with Israel are seen as a component of an intricate set of strategies in the multi-vector foreign policy of Central Asian governments. This policy aims to maintain a delicate balance, primarily in the triangle of relations among the three key powers in Eurasia: China, Russia and the West.

BESA Post-Soviet Conflicts Research Digest No. 5 (February 2024)

In February 2024, the materials prepared by the Post-Soviet Conflicts Research Program at BESA covered a wide array of countries and sub-regions, including Ukraine, Russia, Moldova, Armenia, and Central Asian states, focusing on both internal and external aspects of political development.

French Policy in the Mediterranean and Eastern Europe vs Israeli interests

It is likely that France does not have enough resources to prioritize both Ukraine and Armenia at the same time. Concentrating on two tracks at once, especially when resources are scarce, may lead to their inefficient allocation across both tracks.

Casus Belli: The Reaction in Post-Soviet Countries to Putin’s Interview with Carlson

In his interview with Tucker Carlson, President Vladimir Putin provided justification for his policy toward Ukraine. In particular, considerable attention was paid to Putin's interpretation of history. It is quite obvious that Putin's interpretation of the events in Ukraine was enthusiastically supported by the official Russian press. In Ukraine itself it was received extremely negatively. The perception of this interview in other post-Soviet countries is somewhat more complicated.

The Coming Storm of Autonomous War Robots and the West’s Dangerous Phobias

The war in Ukraine is acting as a super-accelerator in the development of low-cost, low-tech, mass-produced robotic military systems – robot armies, in other words - by actors with little financial or technological ability. One of the biggest questions weighing on the future global and regional balance of power is who will be the first to link these robot armies to artificial intelligence, which would allow them to operate autonomously. The West is possessed by phobias and obsessions that hinder it from adopting such systems. By contrast, forces that place a strong emphasis on the development of asymmetric capabilities – including both state and non-state actors hostile to the West – have absolutely no such inhibitions, creating a dangerous potential new reality.

Prospects for Conflict Settlement in Transnistria

At present Transnistria indeed does not pose a serious military threat to Moldova, let alone to Ukraine, although it remains a base for Russian special services and can be used by them for subversive activities.

“Confused Seas”: The Current State of Maritime Affairs

The global maritime arena is undergoing a period of change and upheaval. This includes Iranian aggression and Houthi piracy, conflict in the Black Sea, maritime border disputes over energy deposits in the Mediterranean Sea, tensions in the South China Sea, Russian and Iranian shadow ships, drought in the Panama Canal, and new emissions standards for vessels, all of which are hindering global trade while adding to the cost of energy transit and insurance. This article provides a brief overview of these emerging challenges, examines the connections between them, and points to steps the global community must take to address them.

BESA Post-Soviet Conflicts Research Digest No. 4 (January 2024)

In January 2024, the analysts writing for the Post-Soviet Conflicts Research Program at BESA prepared eight materials concentrating on antisemitism, nationalism, and ethnic separatism in Russia, geopolitical alliance-making in the South Caucasus, and minoritarian electoral participation in Latvia.

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