News from the field

Armenia–Turkey: Keys to Normalisation According to Mehmet Fatih Ceylan

In the “Dilemme” programme on 15 June 2025 focusing onregional security, Mehmet Fatih Ceylan outlined Turkey’s priorities and expectations regarding the normalisation process with Armenia. Ceylan, a former Turkish ambassador and director of the Ankara Center for Political Studies, served as Turkey’s NATO representative from 2013 to 2018 before retiring in 2019. Both in this […]

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From Names to Claims: Toponymy and Nationalist Strategies in the Caucasus

In recent years—particularly since 2020—the issue of place names in Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia has become a target of nationalist agendas. Both online and in certain diplomatic circles, the use of place names has turned highly political. Artsakh, Shushi, Shusha, West Azerbaijan, Stepanakert, Khankendi… each of these names, when spoken, reveals the allegiance of the speaker.

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Armenia’s Political Turmoil and the Challenge of Truth in the Digital Age

When seeking information about the Caucasus, especially from France, people often face several challenges beyond the language barrier: where to find reliable information, what sources to trust, and how to make sense of this complex region. The fast-moving news cycle combined with new ways of consuming media—as thoroughly explored in Jonathan Hendrickx’s 2024 study—adds even

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Strategic Ambiguity and Survival: Armenia’s Response to Regional Turmoil

Assessment of the challenges and consequences for Yerevan following the Israeli-Iranian confrontation The recent 12-day war between Israel and Iran has profoundly disrupted the Middle East’s strategic balance, with significant implications for Armenia’s interests in the South Caucasus. In a recent analysis published by EVN Report, Nerses Kopalyan explores the significant impact of this confrontation

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The Lachin Airport: when Azerbaijan transforms a former humanitarian corridor into a symbol of power

On May 28th, 2025, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Azerbaijani head of state Ilham Aliyev inaugurated an airport in Lachin, a former crossing point between the Republic of Armenia and the self-proclaimed Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh. Its opening reveals the symbolic and material dimensions of Azerbaijan’s takeover. Lachin, which yesterday represented the bottleneck of a

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From 1918 to 2025: The First Republic’s Message to Today’s Armenia

For the anniversary of the independence of the First Republic proclaimed on May 28th, 1918, Armenian public television broadcast an interview with journalist and public figure Tatul Hakobyan, founder of the Ani Centre. Hakobyan reflected on the historical issues surrounding this first state of the modern era and the current challenges facing the sovereign nation.

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Putting an End to “Celestial Armenia”

By Gaïdz Minassian Thus, the prime minister launched the debate between “real Armenia” and “historical Armenia”. The image is pertinent, the comparison a bit less so, because the word “historical” poses a problem—history being a social reality, a human science that falls within the realm of the real. What if instead of “historical Armenia”, Nikol

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Sergey Lavrov in Yerevan: Status Quo on Agreements and Disagreements

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov paid a working visit to the Republic of Armenia on Wednesday, May 21. The trip drew intense attention because of the complicated relationship between the two countries. In essence, both foreign ministers acknowledged that Russia and Armenia disagree on nearly everything, yet they both recognise the need to prevent their

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Dialogues des interstices : la frontière arméno-turque au prisme de l'eau partagée

Dialogues of the interstices: the Armenian-Turkish border through the prism of shared water

Originally published in French on May 6, 2025 By Elodie Gavrilof In front of the monastery of Khor Virap, facing Mount Ararat, the reality of the closed border is brutally obvious. Below, watchtowers line the road, guarding an area that is inaccessible without special authorisation and reserved for residents only. This striking militarisation is the

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