Armenia’s 2026 elections confirmed Pashinyan’s pro‑Western course, giving Yerevan a mandate to pursue peace with Baku and deepen EU ties while avoiding a rupture with Moscow. For the wider Caucasus, this points to a gradual erosion of Russian leverage, a stronger Western presence, and fragile but advancing normalization—provided reciprocal moves from Azerbaijan and Türkiye hold.

Introduction: In October 2024, the contested legislative elections led the pro-Russian party Georgian Dream in power, which appointed later in November a new president, Mikheïl Kevalachvili. The former president, Salomé Zourabichvili, refused to leave her seat, stating that there is a clear irregularity in the vote count , and, along with other members of the opposition, claiming Georgian dream to be a pro-Russian party. At the end of 2024, the prime minister Irakli Kobakhidz