DISINFO: The US is gradually pushing South Caucasus countries into war with Russia
SUMMARY
US Vice President JD Vance paid visits to Armenia and Azerbaijan. Washington’s close attention to South Caucasus countries bodes no good for either Armenia or Azerbaijan. It takes one step from the US's close relations with post-Soviet countries to their war with Russia. The lessons of Georgia and Ukraine attest to that. The places where US arms appear, this sooner or later have no peace.
RESPONSE
This unfounded and recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation claim accuses an allegedly ever-aggressive West of having an anti-Russian agenda in the Caucasus and other post-Soviet countries, of an attempt to encircle Russia. This narrative falsely portrays Russia as the target of Western hostility. Pro-Kremlin outlets advance the claim that the post-Soviet space, including the South Caucasus and Central Asia, is exclusively within Russia's zone of geopolitical dominance and attempt to discredit any other cooperation between the West.
Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, the South Caucasus has been a region of several ethno-political conflicts in Abkhazia, Nagorno–Karabakh, and South Ossetia. To this day, Russia continues to occupy 20 per cent of Georgia’s territory. Beyond the South Caucasus, Ukraine continues being the victim of unprovoked and brutal Russia’s aggression.
Western countries support peace and security in the South Caucasus region. The EU has a strong interest in a politically stable and economically prosperous Southern Caucasus in full understanding with the states there. It took a prominent mediation role in negotiation and is committed to it. The EU's High Representative said in her statement of 8 August 2025 that: “The EU fully supports the Armenia-Azerbaijan normalisation process and has been working for years with both parties and our international partners to create the conditions for lasting peace (...) We strongly commend both sides and the US Administration for using the momentum and making progress possible.”
Relations between Russia and Azerbaijan strained in late June 2025 following the deaths of two ethnic Azerbaijani men during police raids in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg. In recent years, Yerevan has been seeking to reduce its dependence on Russia and exploring closer ties with the EU and US. A bill, signed into law by the Armenian President on April 4, 2025, formally declared Armenia's intention to begin the process of becoming an EU member.
Read earlier disinformation cases claiming that the West aims to incite a conflict between Russia and the Caucasus, that the West wants Armenia and Azerbaijan to be on fire, and that the EU uses the Caucasus as a springboard to pressure Russia.