Murad Muradov 

Co-founder, Deputy Director

Murad Muradov graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Relations from the Academy of Public Administration of the Republic of Azerbaijan (2011), a Master of Arts in Diplomacy and International Affairs from the Azerbaijan Diplomatic Academy (2013) and a Master of Science in Comparative Politics from the London School of Economics (2015). He participated in a number of training programs, summer schools and fellowships both in Azerbaijan and abroad, including the John Smith Trust Fellowship for Wider Europe (2017). His areas of expertise cover security and geopolitics of post-Soviet countries, Western European politics and international political economy.

Ayaz Rzayev

Research Fellow 

Ayaz Rzayev studied at Baku State University in 2007-2011 and received BA in International Studies. He obtained his MA from the University of Bologna, Italy in 2015. In 2016-2019, he worked as a researcher at the Center for Strategic Studies (CSS), and then as a leading consultant at the Center of Analysis of International Relations. Ayaz is an expert on international security.

Javidan Ahmadkhanli

Research Fellow

Javidan Ahmadkhanli is a graduate of Ankara University, Faculty of Political Sciences (Mekteb-i Mulkiye), Department of Political Science and Public Administration. He received his master's degree in Global Political Processes from The Academy of Public Administration under the President of the Azerbaijan Republic. He worked as an expert on Turkey's domestic and foreign policy at the Center for Strategic Studies (SAM). His research topics include political processes in Turkey, the Middle East and North Africa.

Simona Scotti

Research Fellow

Simona Scotti is a Research Fellow at Topchubashov Center. Her main areas of expertise include security and geopolitical developments in the South Caucasus,  Turkish foreign policy, EU-South Caucasus relations, and Turkey-South Caucasus relations. She holds a Master's degree in International Relations from the Ca' Foscari University of Venice. She also carried out academic exchange programs in Russia, Serbia and Colombia. She has been featured in multiple international media outlets.

Nigar Muzaffarova

Research Fellow

Nigar Muzaffarova is majoring at Public Policy and Social Change at the University of Tübingen. She obtained her bachelor's degree at the Academy of Public Administration. Data visualization and economic tendencies in the Caucasus region are her major fields of interest, alongside the developments in tech industries around the world. 

Nigar is an alumna of the CAT program 2019-2020 edition, Conflict School 2021 organized by the Eurasia Partnership Foundation and the "Media and Information Literacy" program of Interlink Academy in 2022.

Nigar is also specialized in writing and coordination of projects in the field of youth, especially focusing on human rights education, non-formal learning methods and peacebuilding. She has been a part of several boot camps, training and seminars on the above-mentioned topics.

Mahammad Mammadov

Research Fellow

Mahammad Mammadov is a Research Fellow at the Topchubashov Center, a Baku-based think tank. He is also an adjunct lecturer at Khazar University. 

Mr. Mammadov obtained his master's degree from the University of Glasgow and the University of Tartu. His research interests include energy, connectivity, geopolitical and transitional developments in the post-Soviet space with a specific focus on Azerbaijani foreign policy. His articles frequently appear in national as well as international publications such as the Georgian Institute of Politics, the National Interest, and the New Eastern Europe.