Azerbaijan: From Small to Regional Power?

Abstract

The article gives a general overview of the main factors influencing the formation of Azerbaijan’s foreign policy, as well as analyzes how these factors have changed since Azerbaijan’s independence until 2021. The conclusion is made that the existence of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict has been a key factor in the formation of the political and economic system of the country, as well as the consciousness and perception of the world by its citizens. Since independence, Azerbaijan’s main objective has been to change the regional status quo, as well as to regain military and political control over Nagorno-Karabakh. In the theoretical part of the article, the author considers two categories of statehood: small and medium power. The established definition of small and medium power says that the main criteria of their difference lies in the size of the economy, the number of armed forces, as well as in the criterion of the “will” of the peoples to solve extraordinary foreign policy tasks. The author believes that the consolidation of the country’s available capabilities made it possible not only to achieve the goal of territorial integrity, but also to move Azerbaijan from the category of a small to a medium power. Azerbaijan deliberately moved to the rank of a medium power: through the development of regional ties and energy diplomacy, as well as through the isolation of Armenia. As a result, Azerbaijan’s seizure of seven districts and part of Nagorno-Karabakh, including Shusha, was a significant event that allowed the country to fundamentally change the unfavorable status quo that had prevailed for years.