On December 11, 2025, the Kazakhstan Institute for Strategic Studies under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan (KazISS), jointly with the Armenian Institute for Resilience and State Governance (INFORS Armenia), held the 3rd Kazakhstan–Armenia Expert Forum in an online format.
From the Kazakhstani side, the forum was attended by political scientist Talgat Kaliyev, Deputy Director of the Institute for Foreign Policy Studies under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan Manarbek Kabaziyev, IWEP expert Lidiya Parkhomchik, Deputy Director of KazISS Dauren Aben (moderator), Deputy Director of KazISS Zhanar Gabdullina, Chief Research Fellow of KazISS Sanat Kushkumbayev, as well as other KazISS experts.
The Armenian side was represented by INFORS Armenia founder Gevorg Melikyan, Orbeli analytical Center expert Johnny Melikyan, Senior Research Fellow at APRI Armenia Benyamin Poghosyan, Senior Research Fellow at the Institute for Security Studies (London) Eduard Abramyan, founder of the Alternative Research Center Tatul Manaseryan, and founder of the Anush Klimchik Foundation (Yerevan) Andrzej Klimczyk.
The discussion focused on key directions and trends of transformation taking place in Central Asia and the South Caucasus. As participants noted, regional geopolitics is undergoing a phase of profound change, requiring states to adopt more flexible approaches, seek sustainable formats of interaction, and adapt to the multipolar configuration of international relations. Special attention was paid to the interconnectedness of processes in the two regions and the growing importance of interregional cooperation.
Experts discussed current security challenges, prospects for political dialogue, and the possibility of building a long-term sustainable peace in the South Caucasus. Issues of economic cooperation, transport and logistics connectivity, and the potential of projects capable of linking Central Asia and the South Caucasus were also addressed. Particular interest was shown in the prospects for the development of the Middle Corridor as a tool for expanding communications and strengthening economic ties. Kazakh and Armenian researchers emphasized that amid global turbulence, the role of expert exchange is increasing, and regular forums serve as an effective platform for discussing strategic issues and developing proposals for government authorities of both countries. Following the forum, the parties expressed their readiness to strengthen partnership ties between the expert communities of the two countries and to promote the expansion of analytical cooperation between the two regions.
