Introduction
For several centuries, the efforts of many countries on the international level have been directed at obtaining control over the territories or gaining the power of influence on the countries of the Caucasus. The involvement of foreign countries in the region is motivated by various reasons, including politics, economy, international relations, resources, and business development. According to Newmann (n. d.), how countries behave in the international system is predetermined by their national interests and conditioned by their vision of their place in the international arena. For that matter, targeting the Caucasus as a potentially influential area with a promising and steadily developing economy, several leading countries of the world compete over the power of influence in the region. In such a manner, they will be able to establish a stronger position on a global level for further competing for economic and political advantages over rivals.
The External Involvement in the Caucasus Affairs
Firstly, one international actor that demonstrates a particular interest in the Caucasus is Russia. The countries of the Caucasus have long been targeted by the predecessors of the Russian Federation, such as the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union. Indeed, the support of Armenia in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and the continued involvement in the control over the conflict’s resolution allows Russia to remain a powerful body on the territory of the Caucasus (Hunter, 1999). Obtaining such a presence in the region will enable Russia to extend its global presence and ensure its competitive advantage in terms of economy, military power, and access to resources (Coene, 2009; Hunter, 1999). Moreover, gaining a strong influence on Armenia allows the Russian Federation to escalate the tensions between Azerbaijan and Armenia to ensure that the countries of the South Caucasus are politically bound with Russia.
The second external actor involved in the affairs in the South Caucasus is the European Union (EU). As a significant international entity, the EU leads the politics of partnership with Azerbaijan. The interest of the EU in such cooperation is validated by the resource needs that might be met by the country with its vast natural resource base. Indeed, according to Bocse (2019), obtaining access to Azerbaijan’s energy resources allows Europe a diversified system of energy suppliers, which ultimately provides more freedom and less dependence on a sole provider. Under current circumstances, the shift of the European energy demand from Russia to Azerbaijan is motivated by the sanctions imposed on the Russian Federation due to its invasion of Ukraine (O’Byrne, 2022). Indeed, with the conflict in Ukraine developing, the EU claims to improve its “resilience […] on the issue of gas supply in case Russia decides to reduce or halt deliveries” (O’Byrne, 2022: para. 2). In such a manner, the continued influence of the EU on the affairs in the South Caucasus grants this external actor a sustained benefit of energy security under the unstable circumstances with Russia’s supply.
The third external actor interested in extending its power of influence in the South Caucasus is the United States of America. In particular, the USA has initiated oil contracts with Azerbaijan to ensure its energy security, similar to the politics of the EU in the region (Humbatova, 2019). Indeed, since the economy of the USA is highly reliant on oil prices, it is imperative for the USA to remain influential in the South Caucasus to maintain its presence as a decisive stakeholder on a global level. Moreover, with the involvement of other international competitors, such as Russia and China, in the region, the USA obtains a competitive advantage by building partnership relations with Azerbaijan (Humbatova, 2019). Thus, the USA remains one of the leading forces in the international arena that demonstrates a significant power of influence in the South Caucasus region.
China is the fourth actor demonstrating an impact on the affairs in the South Caucasus region. During the past decades, China has ignited a significant economic development campaign to extend its dominance on a global scale (Fallahi and Shafiee, 2020). China is referred to as a rising economic power globally, with the ambitions of competing with the USA and the EU in trade (Fallahi and Shafiee, 2020). For that reason, building functional relationships with the states that might provide a geographical, political, and economic connection with influential states is essential for the People’s Republic of China. Indeed, with the intensive efforts aimed at constructing the Belt and Road Initiative, China advances its economic and trade relations with Europe, which implies the Caucasus’ status as a transitioning territory (Fallahi and Shafiee, 2020). Under such circumstances, China is interested in maintaining favorable relations with the South Caucasus states to obtain stable trade routes with the global community.
Finally, Turkey is the fifth external actor involved in international relations with the Caucasus. Being an energy-dependent state, Turkey is connected with Azerbaijan’s oil and gas provision (O’Byrne, 2022). The shortage of energy resources that Turkey has faced due to the recent oil and gas crisis conditioned by the Russian-Ukrainian war has had a boosting impact on building a favorable connection between Turkey and the South Caucasus, and Azerbaijan in particular (O’Byrne, 2022). Moreover, with the instability of energy-based relations with Iran, Turkey is particularly interested in advancing its influence in the South Caucasus to ensure its resiliency in terms of gas supply (O’Byrne, 2022). Therefore, the country’s involvement with the states of the South Caucasus is motivated by the opportunity for continuous access to energy resources.
Conclusion
In summation, the overview of the external actors’ involvement in the affairs in the South Caucasus has revealed their motivation by economic, political, and resource-based reasons. Russia, the USA, the EU, China, and Turkey advance their presence in the South Caucasus to compete in the international arena. While some countries, such as Russia, the USA, and China, are interested in strengthening their global dominance through Caucasus involvement, others try to maintain resource supply for internal resilience.
Reference List
Bocse, A. M. (2019) ‘EU energy diplomacy: searching for new suppliers in Azerbaijan and Iran’, Geopolitics, 24(1), pp. 145-173.
Coene, F. (2009) The Caucasus: an introduction. New York: Routledge.
Fallahi, E., and Shafiee, N. (2020) ‘Assessment of China’s strategy in the South Caucasus,’ Central Eurasia Studies, 13(2), pp. 515-542.
Humbatova, S. I. (2019) ‘The impact of oil factor on Azerbaijan economy’, International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy, 9(4), pp. 381-387.
Hunter, S. T. (1999) ‘The evolution of the foreign policy of the Transcaucasian states’, in Garry K. Bertsch et al. (eds), Crossroad and conflict. Security and foreign policy in the Caucasus. Florence: Taylor and Francis, pp. 25-47.
Newmann, B. (n. d.) A brief introduction to theories on international relations and foreign policy.
O’Byrne, D. (2022) Azerbaijan to Europe’s rescue?Eurasianet.