BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 12. The latest
geopolitical developments have reinforced the Caspian region's
centrality to global affairs, said Efgan Nifti, President of the
Caspian Policy Center (CPC).
Addressing the opening of the CPC 10th anniversary Trans-Caspian
Forum in Washington, DC, Nifti pointed out that the Caspian region
has moved firmly to the center of global affairs.
Turning to recent developments, Nifti highlighted the initialing
of the text of the peace agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan
in Washington, accelerating development of the Middle Corridor, the
enduring ramifications of Russia's war in Ukraine, growing
competition over critical minerals, and most recently, renewed
tensions involving Iran.
“All of these developments have reinforced the Caspian region's
centrality to global affairs and the urgency of the conversations
we are here to have today,” he noted.
Nifti also highlighted the region's growing capacity for
collaboration, both among its own states and with external partners
such as the United States. He noted that Azerbaijan's integration
into Central Asia's Consultative Meetings, which created the C6
format, "reflects a growing recognition that energy flows, economic
corridors, and security dynamics increasingly bind Central Asia and
the South Caucasus into a single strategic space."
Nifti closed his remarks by observing that, after a year of
extraordinary progress in the region, "the task now is delivery,
translating agreements into implementation and ambition into
results."
