South Caucasus must be viewed as independent region, AIR Center chairman says

The South Caucasus must be viewed as an independent region with its own logic and specifics, Chairman of the Board of the Center for Analysis of International Relations and Multiculturalism (AIR Center) Farid Shafiyev said at the international conference "Security and Cooperation in the South Caucasus," Report informs.

According to him, for many years, if not decades, the South Caucasus was viewed through the prism of the Russian Empire and then the Soviet Union. "This was the view of Sovietologists on the South Caucasus and Azerbaijan. But today, 30 years after the collapse of the Soviet Union, we have a completely new generation of people in these countries who have never seen the Soviet Union and have not lived in the previous system. Therefore, the time has come to view the South Caucasus as an independent region possessing its own specifics. Of course, history has played an important role, including the history of the last century or so," he said.

Speaking about the growing role of the region, Shafiyev noted Azerbaijan's joining the C6 format as a significant event.

"Azerbaijan's joining the C6 format shapes a new political dynamic and expands interaction between the South Caucasus and Central Asia. Azerbaijan has become a member of the C6 consultative group and also plays a key role in developing energy and transport links between the countries of Central Asia and the South Caucasus. I am talking about the memorandum of understanding signed between Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan. I am also talking about the Black Sea Cable project, which is designed to ensure alternative energy supplies to Europe," he emphasized.