Daily Brief

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Wednesday, 18 February 2026

•3 min read

Regional * South Ossetia and Abkhazia top Russian-state owned media group Russia Today’s ‘friendliness’ ranking in the post-Soviet world. South Ossetia has ranked first and Abkhazia second. Armenia has ranked eighth with Azerbaijan trailing behind at ninth place — both countries appear to have dropped in ranking from 2024. Armenia * Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has received Gert-Jan Koopman, the EU Director-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations. According to the Armenian

Daily Brief

Tuesday, 17 February 2026

by OC Media

•3 min read

Regional * On Monday consular consultations took place between the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry and the Foreign Ministry of Georgia in Baku. The parties discussed issues ‘related to protecting the rights and freedoms of citizens’ of both countries and agreed to ‘intensify cooperation’. * An Azerbaijani–Georgian–Turkish business forum will be held in Georgia’s Kakheti region on 26 February. According to Azerbaijani media outlet APA, the three countries’ economy ministers will all attend the fo

Daily Brief

Monday, 16 February 2026

by OC Media

•4 min read

Armenia * Armenian authorities have barred Catholicos Karekin II from leaving the country as part of a criminal case opened in January. He and several other clergy members are under investigation for allegedly failing to execute or obstructing the enforcement of a judicial act concerning a senior clergyman. The restriction came ahead of the Bishops’ Synod scheduled for 16–19 February in Austria. * In turn, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated he believes the purpose of holding the Synod in A

Daily Brief

Friday, 13 February 2026

by OC Media

•4 min read

Regional * Russian Deputy Prime Minister Aleksei Overchuk has stated that Russia has ‘decided to begin substantive negotiations on the restoration of two sections of Armenian railways’, as requested by Yerevan. * Overchuk also noted that ‘work is underway to unblock all disrupted tracks in the Caucasus, including the possibility of restoring railway [connections] between Russia and Georgia through the territory of Abkhazia’. * An Azerbaijani delegation has travelled to Armenia to participate

Daily Brief

Thursday, 12 February 2026

by OC Media

•4 min read

Regional * Russia has not responded for the third month in a row to an official request from Armenia for legal assistance in the case concerning the murder of Chechen woman Aishat Baimuradova. Under the Chisinau Convention, Russia is obliged to respond to such requests as soon as possible, the Crisis Group NC SOS has stated. According to the organisation, the request from the Armenian authorities was sent on 10 December 2025. Armenia * Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has announced the possi

Daily Brief

Wednesday, 11 February 2026

by OC Media

•4 min read

Regional * According to Georgia’s State Security Service (SSG), a Georgian who was detained in Akhalgori (Leningor) in August 2025 has been released and is now on territory controlled by the central government. The agency stated that ‘all relevant instruments available to the central authorities were actively used in the process of securing the release of the illegally detained Georgian citizen’. Armenia * Nancy Pelosi, the ex-US Speaker of the House of Representatives, called it ‘deeply d

Daily Brief

Tuesday, 10 February 2026

by OC Media

•4 min read

Armenia * US Vice President JD Vance arrived in Armenia on Monday, marking the highest-level visit of a US official in the country’s history. Vance met with Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and announced a number of key deals, including a pledge for massive US investment in nuclear energy, the sale of surveillance drones, and cooperation on chips and AI. On Tuesday morning, before his planned departure for Azerbaijan, Vance visited the Tsitsernakaberd Armenian Memorial. Azerbaijan * Yesterda