Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book highlights the interconnections between different levels of security. It focuses on various aspects of European union and Russian approaches to security governance in the Caucasus region. The book deals with the aftermath of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict of 1988–1994, which forced hundreds of thousands of people to flee their homes in an environment of insecurity. It describes the pattern of micro-level societal dynamics, introducing field research findings on the issues of the construction of refugee women’s stereotyping after their forced relocation to Armenia and the deformation of this stereotype influenced by local discourses. The book discusses security sector reform in Georgia and how its defence and security institutions have been transformed from a site of corruption, crime and poor governance to a much more professionalised institutional structure that has even played a role in multilateral military missions.