A proxy’s military success can harm the patron state’s diplomatic interests

Evidence

The success of the Nagorno-Karabakh offensive caused problems for Armenia, which was anxious to improve its relations with Turkey and Iran so as to ease the food and energy shortages resulting from the war and the Turkish blockade. “[T]he better things are going in Karabakh, the more difficult it is for Yerevan,” commented one Western diplomat. — Samuel P. Huntington, The Clash of Civilizations and the…, 821

Categorization

• XREF: Parallel: the Nagorno-Karabakh entity’s success hurting Armenia echoes how sanctioned non-state allies can constrain great-power patrons in proxy conflicts.