Environment and Habitat

Armenia is currently hosting the COP17 conference of the Convention on Biological Diversity, which began earlier this week (19 October) and will run until 30 October, bringing around 15,000 participants from 196 different countries to Yerevan. At a leaders' summit held as part of COP17, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan expressed realistic ambitions: “We are halfway towards achieving these goals (Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework), and we must honestly acknowledge that we are not yet moving in the right direction. Our task now is not to make new promises, but to fulfil the commitments we have already made.” Pashinyan pointed towards Armenia's own records, noting that the whitefish stock in Lake Sevan has increased substantially in the last ten years. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze also addressed the summit, with Turkiye sending its agriculture minister. However, there were no reports of Azerbaijani representatives attending. The conference has given Yerevan a valuable international platform, yet the absence of Azerbaijan is likely to be read as a sign that the peace process in the South Caucasus has not yet been translated into wider regional cooperation. The leaders' summit was opened by Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, who stressed that hosting the conference was a great honour for Armenia. He expressed hope that it would 'be productive and contribute to protecting our planet's biodiversity'. 'We – the citizens of Armenia, the government, state authorities and local governments – owe a debt to our nature,' the prime minister said. He noted that the international community had already developed the concept of 'living in harmony with nature’ and adopted the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework in 2022, setting out goals and specific targets to be achieved by 2030. 'We are halfway towards achieving these goals, and we must honestly acknowledge that we are not yet moving in the right direction. Our task now is not to make new promises, but to fulfil the commitments we have already made,' Nikol Pashinyan said. The COP17 conference is expected to adopt a declaration at leaders' level. More than 30 documents are scheduled for discussion. If approved, the commitments set out in them will become legally binding on countries that are parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity.”

Far-right groups in Georgia rallied in Tbilisi on September 20 against the UAE-based Eagle Hills investment and its planned large-scale developments near Tbilisi and Batumi. Organizers described the demonstration as a protest against “Arab towns” and announced the creation of a “National Unity for the Protection of Georgian Lands” to coordinate opposition to the projects. The initiative plans to bring together political groups, academics, lawyers and economists opposed to the investment. Organizers also announced plans for legal challenges before Georgia’s Constitutional Court, administrative courts and Prosecutor’s Office, alongside further demonstrations. The Eagle Hills project, representing $6.5 billion in real estate, is promoted by the Georgian government as the largest investment in the country’s history. Critics have questioned the agreement’s transparency, financial viability and potential environmental and social effects. Far-right groups have additionally linked the project to fears about immigration and demographic change. Eagle Hills’ project was announced in January 2025 following Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze’s visit to the United Arab Emirates. Its expansion has since become a focal point for both economic debate and nationalist opposition, with different groups raising distinct concerns about the investment. The governing Georgian Dream party has condemned the protests.