The national security strategy adopted in 2007 provided a detailed definition of security and identified its threats. The key threat to the Armenian state was considered to be the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. The document indicated the Collective Security Treaty Organisation main guarantor of security, with Russia being Armenia’s main partner in bilateral relations. The second position in the strategy was assigned to cooperation with the NATO and the OSCE. One of the priorities identified was to intensify the economic and trade connections with the European Union and participation in the European Neighbourhood Policy as a step towards integration with European structures. As to bilateral relations, the most significant were Armenia’s contacts with Georgia and Iran. If we compare the assumptions of the strategy with the policy pursued by Armenia after 2007, it is clear that the measures taken are in line with the provisions of the document. By the end of 2016, the most serious threat to Armenia – the Nagorno-Karabakh issue – remained unresolved. Russia reinforced its position as Armenia’s strategic ally. The talks conducted between Armenia and the NATO are of little significance in view of the obligations assumed by Armenia. The same goes for the talks with the European Union after Armenia’s withdrawal from signing the association agreement, accession to the Eurasian Economic Union on 01 January 2015 and signing bilateral agreements with the Russian Federation. 

This article reviews the academic literature on the regional security complex of the South Caucasus, which has been drawing the attention of the academic community for a long time. The paper aims to examine the security dynamics in the South Caucasus with a focus on Azerbaijan and a way in which domestic security is interconnected and linked to the region`s neighborhood and global arena. The conceptual framework for the paper is the regional security complex theory, elaborated by Barry Buzan and Ole Wæver. South Caucasus is an unstable region with several secessionist conflicts and interstate wars, exposed to the influence of its neighbors, which shape the regional security environment. Besides, the region is riven by geopolitical fractures as regional states have various foreign policy orientations, which hampers the resolution of regional conflicts and complicates cooperation. The research is carried at three levels of analysis - the domestic level, reviewing internal vulnerabilities and state to state relations, interregional level, examining dynamics between regional and neighboring states, and the last level - global, considering the interplay between regional and the world-leading powers. Correspondingly, sections of the paper study internal challenges and threats of the regional states, examine relations between Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia, and their neighborhood - Turkey, Iran, Russia, as well as global powers - the EU and the US to analyze similar and conflicting interests and patterns of influence. The article concludes that the South Caucasus security environment is unstable, hampered by the failure of democratic transformation and unresolved conflicts, namely Nagorno-Karabakh, which Russia uses as a tool to keep Caucasian states in a sphere of its influence. It is evident that Azerbaijan plays a vital role in the production and transit of hydrocarbons from the Caspian region to Europe. Therefore, it is crucial to eliminate threats coming from the region and to ensure the security of energy infrastructure, carrying energy resources westwards.

Celem opracowania jest analiza specyfiki konfliktu w Górskim Karabachu oraz jego implikacji dla bezpieczeństwa Azerbejdżanu. Określono tym samym genezę konfliktu, jego przedmiot oraz proces pokojowy. Azerbejdżan postrzegał konflikt karabaski jako zagrażający jego integralności terytorialnej i niepodległości oraz roli międzynarodowej. Porozumienie z listopada 2020 roku można traktować jako sukces polityki Azerbejdżanu, gdyż sankcjonuje prawnie przyłączenie większości terytorium Górskiego Karabachu.