The Biden administration inherited a decade-long uncertainty in US policy towards the South Caucasus. What should the countries of the region expect from the new American administration, in the context of the rapidly changing geopolitical environment in and around the South Caucasus? Should we expect more US engagement or less? Should we expect more security cooperation or less? What about democracy promotion? How will the US policy towards Iran, Turkey, and Russia impact the region?
Our panel of speakers with in-depth knowledge of the Washington policy-making landscape answered these question and more.
Speakers:
Jason Bruder, Former Foreign Relations Committee Staffer and Senior Advisor at Open World
Scott Cullinane, Executive Director, US-Europe Alliance
Claire Kaiser, Director for Strategic Initiatives, McLarty Associates
Mark Simakovsky, Nonresident Senior Fellow, Atlantic Council
Moderator: Svante E. Cornell, Director, Central Asia-Caucasus Institute
When: Tuesday, February 16, 2021, 12:00-1:15 pm EST
The event was livestreamed on the CACI Facebook page and is now available on YouTube.
On January 21, 2021 Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan signed a long-discussed and major agreement. When fully realized it will lead to the joint exploration of a major but long-contested oil field in the Caspian Sea. The agreement itself, and the opening of the "Friendship" oil deposits, are likely to have profound significance not only for the two countries but for the Caucasus and Central Asia as a whole and, equally, for the major powers.
Our distinguished guest speakers discussed this agreement, the regional collaboration that gave rise to it, and its meaning for the region and for the world.
Moderator:
S. Frederick Starr, Chairman, Central Asia-Caucasus Institute.
Speakers:
Amb. Meret Orazov, Ambassador of Turkmenistan to the United States
Amb. Elin Suleymanov, Ambassador of Azerbaijan to the United States
Ambassador Matthew Bryza, Senior Fellow, Atlantic Council
When: Tuesday, February 9, 2021 at 11:00-12:00 PM EST
The event was livestreamed on the CACI Facebook page and is now available on Youtube.
How have countries of Central Asia and the Caucasus responded to COVID-19 and how are they planning to recover and rebuild? The Central Asia-Caucasus Institute invites you to the presentation of the International Monetary Funds' Regional Economic Outlook for Central Asia and the Caucasus, published on October 19, 2020. This important study offers a positive account of mitigation measures but cautionary words for the future. Our speaker was Dr. Subir Lall, Deputy Director, Middle East and Central Asia Department, International Monetary Fund. S. Frederick Starr chaired and moderated.
When: Monday, December 21, 2020, 10 - 11 AM EST
The event was live-streamed on the CACI Facebook page and is now available on Youtube.
The Central Asia-Caucasus Institute, in cooperation with the Embassy of Kazakhstan to the United States, would like to invite you to a CACI online Forum on Kazakhstan’s role in international mediation. The event will be held at 10 AM on December 4, 2020, and will mark the publication of a new Silk Road Paper on the topic. In recent years, Kazakhstan has taken on the role of a mediator in several international disputes, ranging from the Iranian nuclear issue and the Ukraine conflict to Turkish-Russian relations and the Syrian civil war. The study, authored by Svante E. Cornell and S. Frederick Starr, analyzes the reasons for Kazakhstan’s involvement in international mediation and the implications thereof.
Moderator:
- Mamuka Tsereteli, Senior Fellow, Central Asia-Caucasus Institute
Speakers:
- S. Frederick Starr, Chairman, Central Asia-Caucasus Institute
- Amb. Erzhan Kazykhanov, Ambassador of Kazakhstan to the United States
- Svante E. Cornell, Director, Central Asia-Caucasus Institute
- David A. Merkel, Associate Fellow for Geo-Economics and Strategy, International Institute for Strategic Studies
When: Friday, December 4th, 2020, 10-11:00 AM EST
The event is now available on Youtube.