Extra-Regional Actors in the South Caucasus: Armenia–India Alignment in the Spotlight

Abstract

Armenia’s quest for new security guarantors after the Second Garabagh War has elevated India to the position of its key arms supplier. This marks the emergence of India as a new extra-regional actor with a footprint in the South Caucasus amid the ongoing reconfiguration of the regional geopolitical landscape. New Delhi now views the South Caucasus as part of its broader geopolitical strategy, particularly in light of Azerbaijan’s close ties with Pakistan and Türkiye. India’s growing military cooperation with Armenia, highlighted by increased arms supply agreements, is a significant reflection of the security dynamics of the region. Given the fragility of the South Caucasus’s security architecture, India’s deepening involvement introduces new complexities into an already delicate geopolitical environment, raising questions about how these actions might influence prospects for peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan. This article also explores the ideological drivers behind the alignment between New Delhi and Yerevan. It concludes that these developments generate reasonable concerns about their potential consequences for peace efforts between the two South Caucasian republics, while also suggesting that India’s strategy in the region could not only affect its relations with Azerbaijan but also risk undermining its broader economic and connectivity interests.