Unrecognised Reality

This chapter examines the unrecognized entity, or ‘de facto state’, that has emerged and survived in Nagorny Karabakh since 1991. The chapter begins by examining the polarised portrayals of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR) as either a vibrant self-determining state or the puppet of an occupying power. The chapter then examines the political structures and institutions of the NKR, before then examining its political economy. It argues that the NKR is a political formation characterised by strategic integration with Armenia and tactical expressions of independent sovereignty. The chapter then examines the scope of democratisation in the entity, and the challenges posed by its layered geographies and the emergence of new human geographies within them.