The United States Competes in the Post-Soviet Space: Preventing Russian Interference in the South Caucasus
After successfully expanding its influence in Azerbaijan and Armenia, the Trump administration should turn its attention to Georgia.
Vance is the first vice president to visit Armenia and the highest-ranking U.S. official to do so. This visit is an important part of the Trump administration's efforts to consolidate American influence and curb Russian activities in the region, where Moscow has long held a dominant position.
The main purpose of Vance's trip was to consolidate the outcomes of the August 2023 summit held at the White House between Armenia and Azerbaijan. At the summit, the two countries signed a peace agreement aimed at ending nearly 40 years of conflict.
Vance focused on implementing parts of the bilateral trade agreements previously pledged to Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev. It was these agreements that led the two countries to choose peace last year. Their agreements include the "Trump International Peace and Prosperity Route" (TRIPP) — a 27-mile railway and road project connecting Azerbaijan and its exclave Nakhchivan, passing through Armenia. TRIPP aims to open up a trade route between Central Asia and Europe that bypasses Russia and Iran.
On February 9, Vance and Pashinyan signed a civil nuclear energy cooperation agreement, including $5 billion for replacing Armenia's Soviet-era nuclear infrastructure, as well as a $40 billion contract for fuel and maintenance. The agreement weakened the final collaboration proposal put forward by Rosatom, the Russian state atomic energy company.
A day earlier, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov warned Armenian parliamentary speaker Aram Simonian, "Getting closer to the West may harm cooperation with traditional allies."
The next day, Vance visited Aliyev and signed a strategic partnership agreement covering economic and security cooperation. The agreement includes defense sales, artificial intelligence collaboration, energy security, and counterterrorism cooperation.
In general, this regional trip was successful but incomplete. The reason is obvious. Vance refused to visit the region's third-largest country, Georgia.
Source: The National Interest
About the Author: Katie Korkia and Dmitri Shapiro
Original: toutiao.com/article/1858958934349962/
Disclaimer: This article represents the views of the author alone.