Armenia–Azerbaijan Conflict
Explainer | How the India-Pakistan clashes played out in the Armenia-Azerbaijan infospace
Both Armenia and Azerbaijan publicly backed their respective allies — India and Pakistan — in the four-day war.
News Stories
Today, 16 May 2025
Today, 16 May 2025
Daily Brief
Friday, 16 May 2025
Armenia * Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan arrived in Albania to participate in the sixth Summit of the European Political Community. Pashinyan met his Albanian counterpart Edi Rama, and discussed bilateral relations, and ‘the prospects for cooperation in various fields’. * While in Albania, Pashinyan also met with António Costa, President of the European Council, and EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. The EU representatives ‘welcomed and considered an important step’ Armenia’s adopt
OC Insider
Armenian authorities are choosing the wrong role model
Armenian authorities are taking steps to introduce new restrictions on media and freedom of speech ahead of the 2026 parliamentary elections. At the end of April, Armenia’s Justice Ministry released a series of draft legislative amendments, which, if adopted, would require media outlets — as well as individual social media users — to not only publicly refute or publish a response to insulting or defamatory content, but also to remove such expressions or even the entire publication. The authori
Yesterday, 15 May 2025
Azerbaijan
Military salaries cut in Nakhchivan as funding goes to ‘restore’ Nagorno-Karabakh
Around ₼200-₼300 ($120-$180) were cut per month from the salaries of military personnel based in Azerbaijan’s exclave Nakhchivan.
Daghestan
Daghestani security forces classify May police attack as a terrorist act
According to investigators, the assailants had been preparing the attack for six months.
Azerbaijan
CEO involved in controversial Baku demolition released on house arrest
Galib Mammadov is the CEO of Melissa Group, a construction company that began demolishing a house in Baku with a resident still inside.
Daily Brief
Thursday, 15 May 2025
Regional * According to South Ossetian President Alan Gagloev, South Ossetia and Abkhazia will soon sign an agreement on duty-free trade. Armenia * Parliamentary Speaker Alen Simonyan has met with Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev during an official visit to Astana. During the meeting, Simonyan stressed that Armenia is interested in actively expanding bilateral cooperation in the trade-economic sector. * Deputy Prime Minister Mher Grigoryan has met with Iranian Ambassador to Armenia
Georgia
Former Georgian Defence Minister Okruashvili arrested for refusing to appear at anti-UNM commission
Georgia’s Prosecutor General’s Office launched an investigation into Irakli Okruashvili’s failure to appear at the commission in March.
Wednesday, 14 May 2025
Daghestan
14,000 Daghestanis isolated after rockfall cuts off 53 villages
Local authorities promise to restore access to the cut off villages by Wednesday evening.
Georgia
Georgian Dream passes legislation to simplify banning political parties
Georgian Dream passes legislation to simplify banning political parties
Georgia
Georgia reportedly revokes gun permits for Georgian fighters in Ukraine after Russian court order
Volunteer fighter Rati Burduli, who has been declared a terrorist in Russia, shared the purported order from Georgia’s Interior Ministry.
Kabarda–Balkaria
Authorities in Kabarda–Balkaria accuse Middle Eastern woman of extremism
According to their statement, she made 16 money transfers to an unnamed ‘banned organisation’.
Azerbaijan
UNICEF to reportedly shutter in Azerbaijan ‘in coming months’
Pro-government media has reported that UNICEF is going to be the latest in a series of international organisations to cease operations in Azerbaijan.
Georgia’s EU U-turn
Former Georgian Prime Minister Kvirikashvili calls for release of detained protesters
Kvirikashvili argued that the release of detainees would result ‘only in positive things’ for the government.
Reviews
Review | Dead Souls’ Vacation — a tragicomic documentary about maternal love
Keko Chelidze’s 2020 documentary gently and considerately explores the unusual relationship between a Georgian mother and her musician son.
Azerbaijan
UK sanctions Azerbaijani tanker and five nationals involved in Russian oil trading
The sanctions were announced on 9 May, the day Russia and other former Soviet states commemorate the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany.
Karachay–Cherkessia
Former high-level North Caucasian accused of running criminal syndicate
He faces up to 20 years in prison.
Armenia–Azerbaijan Conflict
Yerevan rebuts yet another allegation by Baku of a ceasefire violation
The statement came just days after Armenia reported that a building in a border village was damaged by Azerbaijani fire.
Daily Brief
Wednesday, 14 May 2025
Regional * On Wednesday morning, Armenia dismissed new Azerbaijani accusations of a ceasefire violation. Armenia * On Tuesday, Defence Minister Suren Papikyan participated in the official opening ceremony of the UN Peacekeeping Ministerial Meeting held in Berlin and met his counterparts. Among them was German Minister of Defence Boris Pistorius, with whom he discussed the defence sector ‘progress and development prospects’. Papikyan also met the UK Minister for the Armed Forces and held in
Tuesday, 13 May 2025
Armenia
Armenian MP suggests allowing conscripts to pay up to $50,000 to reduce length of military service
The proposal, which was made by an MP from the ruling Civil Contract party, is said to have been greenlit by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.
Georgia
Kobakhidze publishes open letter to Trump and Vance
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze expressed disappointment that there have not been high-level talks or communication with the US.
Chechnya
Kadyrov’s teenage son receives yet another honour
This time he received an anniversary medal from the republican special forces department.
Georgia’s EU U-turn
Sanctioned former Georgian prosecutor general seen at Moscow Victory Day parade
OtarParskhataldze was sanctioned by the US in relation to Russia’s ‘malign influence on Georgia’ and is believed to be linked to Bidzina Ivanishvili.
Armenia
Controversial commentary on World War II aired on Armenian public TV spark outrage online
The controversial statement came as Armenia–Russia ties seem to go through another round of crisis.
Georgia
TV Pirveli journalist attacked while reporting on local politician’s resignation
This is not the first time TV Pirveli journalists have faced violence while on the job.
Caucasus Datablog
Datablog | Do Armenians and Georgians support protests?
While a majority in both countries support protests, such support has been on the decline in Armenia since 2019.
Georgia
Journalists rally outside Rustavi prison to mark Mzia Amaghlobeli’s birthday
The date also marked exactly four months since her arrest on charges of assaulting a police officer.
Georgia
Georgian Parliamentary Speaker Papuashvili visits Hungary
Papuashvili spoke at the Conference of Speakers of the EU Parliament.
Daily Brief
Tuesday, 13 May 2025
Regional * CivilNet has reported that Vigen Eoljekjian, a Lebanese–Armenian imprisoned in Azerbaijan since 2020, went on a hunger strike for 15 days in order to be allowed to call his family. His wife, Linda Eoljekjian, said that ‘last week’ they talked to him for the first time since 21 February, for only ‘three minutes’. The family appealed to the Red Cross to learn about his health condition following over two weeks of his hunger strike. Armenia * On Monday night into Tuesday morning,
Monday, 12 May 2025
Georgia’s EU U-turn
Georgian protester attacked for attending anti-government demonstrations
Taia Tsekvava is among the latest demonstrators to have claimed to have been attacked for taking part in the ongoing protests.
