The Black Sea

American strategy in the South Caucasus and greater Eurasia must look beyond traditional infrastructure. Investing in ports and railways is no longer enough. The US must also invest in secure telecom networks, cloud storage, cybersecurity, digital governance, online finance, and artificial intelligence.

This multi-author report is a collaboration among experts from Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Germany, Romania, and the United States.

Any long-term U.S. strategy toward Tehran must recognize that the stakes extend well beyond the Arab world or the Persian Gulf. They also encompass the geopolitical future of the South Caucasus and the broader contest over power, influence, and connectivity across Eurasia.

This is part IV of four-part series on historical perspectives on Crimea and the Dniester: What 120 contemporary factors and 2,500 years of historical evidence imply about combined deprivation.

This is part III of four-part series on historical perspectives on Crimea and the Dniester: What 120 contemporary factors and 2,500 years of historical evidence imply about combined deprivation.

This is part II of four-part series on historical perspectives on Crimea and the Dniester. Geoeconomic, demographic, corridor, and technology vectors — and what they mean for the deprivation thesis.

This is part I of four-part series on historical perspectives on Crimea and the Dniester. What 2,500 years of evidence tells us about combined deprivation.

Why the West has Strategic Stakes in Restoring Georgian Democracy.

The term "Deep State" in the Russian context describes a purported shadow global governing structure that is believed to have an impact on international affairs, including US and EU decision-making. Russia uses this narrative to justify its own geopolitical goals, sow discord within pro-Western cultures, and undermine confidence in democratic governance both at home and in targeted states.

Autumn is fading to winter in Ukraine’s east. The battle lines with Russia are soon to freeze over, though Russia is squeezing out some last-minute victories in key fortress cities. The situation leaves Ukraine tallying the results of the past year. Despite critical hits to the Russian economy, Ukraine’s situation is only bleaker.

Transnistria represents not a frozen conflict but a weaponized platform demonstrating Russia's strategic innovation: achieving exhaustion-based victory through patient accumulation of positional advantages that, when activated synchronously, overwhelm Western consensus-based security structures without triggering decisive response.

Georgia is becoming a test case for whether US security assistance can be made responsive to both strategic and democratic concerns.

Georgia’s latest crisis continues a centuries old pattern for the ancient South Caucasus nation. As a small country in an unstable but strategically important region, finding sustainable security and a geopolitical “home” was always going to be a challenge for Georgia.

NATO’s eastern periphery remains volatile and exposed to critical weaknesses in regional infrastructure. This continues to hinder military integration and rapid reinforcement.

The brief assesses Russia’s strategic options for continued westward aggression, concluding that the Danube Mouth axis represents the most rewarding, probable, and operationally realistic path. Since 2022, the US has strengthened its security posture in Romania, recognizing the region's strategic vulnerability, while the EU maintains its conflict-averse posture, emphasizing negotiation over deterrence