Digital Sovereignty in the South Caucasus: Navigating Challenges Towards Integration within Global Digital Corridors

The article explores key challenges in the formation and development of digital sovereignty across the South Caucasus region. Adopting a political science perspective, it outlines the conceptual framework of the study, which focuses on assessing the level of digital advancement and sovereignty in the context of emerging regional security risks and threats. The analysis examines the institutional foundations underpinning digital infrastructure development in the region, offering an assessment of national readiness for digital transformation. Particular emphasis is placed on the legislative regulation of the digital sector, as well as on strategic approaches to digital development and sovereignty as reflected in national policy documents. The study demonstrates that the ongoing strategic competition between the “North-South” and “East-West” transport and logistics corridors in the South Caucasus also shapes the logic and geography of emerging digital routes. In this context, multilateral integration into international internet traffic corridors is identified as a critical challenge for diversifying access routes, enhancing national digital security, and strengthening digital sovereignty. The analysis of the logistical architecture of digital corridors - at both regional and macro-regional levels - enables the identification of the main barriers and prospects for digital integration in the South Caucasus. Methodologically, the study employs a cross-country comparative approach alongside quantitative measures of digitalization, including the Network Readiness Index, mobile and fixed internet penetration, and related indicators.