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CIAO DATE: 05/06
Integrative Processes in the South Caucasus and their Security Implications
Leila Alieva
March 2006
Introduction
The issue of threats and risks, and policy responses to them, acquired a profound importance after 2001. The post-Soviet developments in the South Caucasus is an interesting case study, reflecting problems and contradictions in the relations between the West and the East, developed democracies and states in transition, Christians and Muslims. It also contributes to the current debates about: asymmetric threats and ways of addressing them, relations between democracy and security, which effect integration processes may have had on the security challenges of the century.
This paper will explore two sets of questions. The first is related to the origin of threats and risks; it aims at exploring how interaction of local strategies and the interests of the external powers affect domestic regimes and the sources of threats and risks. The other set of questions addresses the issue of a driving force behind the integration process in the post-Soviet Caucasus and their effects on security. An exploration of these and other issues may contribute to the current debates on security in the broader international perspective.
