“Favorable conditions for long-term security have been created in the South Caucasus. This is the first opportunity in the global sense after the collapse of the Soviet empire,” Stefan Wolff, Professor of International Security at the University of Birmingham, told Report‘s European bureau.
According to him, both sides (Azerbaijan and Armenia) should use this opportunity with correct assessments: “Armenia has been under an economic and communication blockade for many years due to the ongoing Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Now Azerbaijan has restored its territorial integrity, and there is an agreement on the end of the war. Of course, Russia, which participates here in the name of peacekeeping, also has its own interests, of which the bitter consequences are still being felt in Donbas and Abkhazia today. But I think that the interests of the Azerbaijani and Armenian peoples in the South Caucasus must be taken into account, not the third party, which is the opening of communication lines in the region with the final peace agreement. This will create an additional basis for the international guarantee for security in the region. In this regard, the sides must be very strong-willed and determined,” – he added.