The South Caucasus is tilting West; engagement and the settlement are gains

According to this position, the South Caucasus is tilting West, and engagement with the region together with the peace settlement between Armenia and Azerbaijan are genuine gains. Its advocates describe the settlement as historic and as a step toward normalisation, reconciliation and regional integration, and they cite connectivity, direct trade and reopened links as signs of a realignment away from Russia and toward Europe.

The position appears in coverage of the realignment of the South Caucasus and of the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan and its peace settlement. It is carried by outlets from Western and allied countries: 38 publishers on the first topic and 21 on the second. In both it is stated as a broad consensus rather than a contested claim.

No rival position is attached to it in the available material. The events of recent months include a diplomatic summit in Armenia that brought dozens of leaders from Europe and Canada together, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky attending. Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev responded with critical remarks about Zelensky and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.