AZE.US
A new regional formula may be taking shape in the South Caucasus.
Valeriy Chechelashvili, the former secretary-general of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation organization, said in an interview with Novosti Kavkaza that discussions about bringing Armenia into the Baku-Tbilisi-Ankara framework could mark an important shift in the region’s political architecture.
In his view, a 3+1 format with Turkey as an external but natural regional partner increasingly reflects the new balance taking shape in the South Caucasus.
The comment came amid discussions held on the sidelines of the 152nd Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union in Istanbul.
During the broadcast, it was said that Turkish Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmus, in talks with the Georgian side, stressed the need to strengthen the Turkey-Georgia-Azerbaijan mechanism, while the possible inclusion of Armenia was also discussed as part of broader efforts aimed at peace and stability in the region.
Chechelashvili called that idea timely and politically well-grounded.
He argued that a parliamentary track could become the most workable entry point for such a process. Unlike executive branches, lawmakers often have greater room to float politically sensitive ideas and test new formats of regional engagement. According to Chechelashvili, that mechanism could eventually move beyond symbolic meetings and develop into practical cooperation across foreign affairs, trade, investment, taxation, and other sector-specific areas.
At the heart of his argument was a broader point: the South Caucasus is gradually moving toward a model shaped more by regional actors themselves and less by older geopolitical templates. Chechelashvili said the 3+1 formula now looks more logical and more in tune with the realities emerging across the region.
He also drew a sharp contrast with ideas such as a “neutral Georgia,” describing that concept as unworkable under current conditions. As long as Russian occupation remains in place, he said, such proposals cannot provide either real security guarantees or a path toward restoring Georgia’s territorial integrity.
That is why the signal from Istanbul matters beyond protocol. Armenia is being discussed not simply as a guest at another regional meeting, but as a possible participant in a different kind of South Caucasus arrangement, one built around direct regional coordination and a stronger role for Turkey.
AZE.US