Russia and China will be able to complement each other in South Caucasus – Alexey Maslov

On the sidelines of the 13th international meeting of high representatives in charge of security issues, Alexey Maslov, Director of the Institute of Asian and African Countries at Moscow State University, spoke to Alpha News about China’s and India’s policies regarding the South Caucasus region, as well as the potential for a military-political alliance between Moscow and Beijing.

According to the expert, China has never had a foothold in the South Caucasus region, so now it is important for the country to develop connections there.

“We see that China views both the Caucasus and Transcaucasia as part of its Belt and Road initiative. And in this sense, this is a very important infrastructure and logistics hub. We see funding for the road between Azerbaijan and Turkey, significant investments in Georgia, investments in various hubs in Armenia. For China, this is primarily a very important point for sending its goods, which will then go to Europe. At the same time, there is another important point: China has never had support in this region, at least in recent years, so it is very important for China to develop connections there now. In addition, this ensures regional security. It is not easy for China now, because China is trying to build equal relations with Turkey, Armenia, Georgia, and Azerbaijan, but China is learning,” Maslov said.

According to the expert, Russia and China can complement each other in the South Caucasus region—China as an investor and Russia as a moderator of regional security.

“Russia, of course, had and still has very big interests in this region. China as an investor today can be ahead of Russia, but at the same time we must understand that China has no experience in eliminating regional conflicts in this region, in which Russia has both positive and negative experience. Therefore, I believe Russia and China can complement each other—China as an investor and Russia as a moderator of regional security,” Maslov emphasized.

The expert also stressed that interest in the South Caucasus among Asian countries will grow.

“India, as a political partner, is a novelty for the region. India now wants to supply its goods and buy a lot of goods from Armenia, from Georgia, and partly from Azerbaijan. And India has a strong interest in Azerbaijani oil. In this sense, India is unlikely to compete with China or Russia but will occupy its small sector. The interest in the South Caucasus among Asian countries is expected to grow,” Maslov noted.