Mar 27, 2024

Georgian-Azerbaijani Communities Embrace Novruz

Novruz festival in Tbilisi’s Old Town @ Onnik James Krikorian 2024

The weather this year was not the greatest for the annual Novruz celebration among Georgia’s ethnic Azerbaijani community. However, there was still no end of events to mark the occasion, which is also celebrated in Iran, Central Asia, Türkiye, the South Caucasus, and elsewhere, though traditions may vary. Perhaps it was global warming that disrupted the weather this year, but even if many events had to be moved indoors, some were more fortunate.

That was certainly the case for an event in the area around the Sulphur Baths in Tbilisi’s Old Town. Blessed with sunny weather, large crowds assembled in the Abanotubani area that featured a stage and tents and stalls representing Iran, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, and Türkiye. The event was supported by the Embassy of the Republic of Azerbaijan in Georgia, the Mirza Fatali Akhundzade Museum of Azerbaijani Culture, and the Council of Azerbaijani Elders in Georgia.

 

The Ambassadors of Azerbaijan and Türkiye, Faig Guliyev and Ali Kaan Orbay, were present, as were their counterparts from Iran, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan.

The full piece with more photographs is here

Novruz in Georgia @ Onnik James Krikorian 2024

 

 

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Pashinyan Reignites Constitutional Reform Debate Amid Declining Ratings

Pashinyan Reignites Constitutional Reform Debate Amid Declining Ratings

On January 18, six years after the street protests that brought him to power in 2018, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan raised the issue of reforming the country’s constitution during a meeting with the Armenian Ministry of Justice. The constitution was originally introduced under Levon Ter-Petrosyan in 1995 and controversially amended under his successors, Robert Kocharyan and Serzh Sargsyan.

Baku, Yerevan, and Moscow Clash Over Regional Transit

Baku, Yerevan, and Moscow Clash Over Regional Transit

In my first piece for The Jamestown Foundation, I again look at the continuing geopolitical impasse on attempts to restore economic and  transport links in the region following the 2020 Armenia-Azerbaijan war as per the trilateral ceasefire statement that ended it.  This is a topic that I’ve covered consistently since the beginning of 2021 but it has particularly come to a head now as hopes for a framework agreement between Baku and Yerevan persist.