From the Caspian Sea NYT Story, a flashback from my time in Baku, Azerbaijan
Introduction, The Caspian Sea Trade Route Recently, the NYT wrote about Iran using the Caspian Sea to trade with Russia away from the sanctions regime. Above is a map showing the Caspian Sea trade route discussed in the article. Here is a gift link to read it. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/09/world/middleeast/caspian-sea-iran-russia.html?unlocked_article_code=1.hVA.g8DA.WVdPI6GueiE9&smid=url-share If you note that Baku, Azerbaijan is prominent there along the Caspian Sea Trade Route, that might explain why this article reminded me of an episode from back in 2008 that makes for a good story that I hope you enjoy. My 2008 Work in Baku 2008 brought us in the U.S. an amazing Presidential general election resulting in the election of President Obama. During that year, I was working on a civil society project for IFES in Azerbaijan. https://www.ifes.org/ does civil society work around the world to promote democracy. Several times that year, I ...