Latest Articles about Georgia
NATO-Ukraine-Georgia Summit Breaks New Ground Despite Disruptions
United States President Donald Trump’s behavior at the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s (NATO) recent summit in Brussels (July 11–12) and in its aftermath has cast a shadow on this landmark event. Trump’s follow-up actions, including the meeting with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, continued hitting... MORE
Georgian Opposition Unites Behind Single Presidential Candidate
The leaders of ten Georgian opposition parties affiliated with the coalition “Power Is in Unity” gathered near the Bagrat Temple, in the city of Kutaisi, on July 18, to name their joint candidate for president (Georgia Today, July 18). Presidential elections in this South Caucasus... MORE
New Georgian Government Attempts Reset With Russia While Balancing Euro-Atlantic Aspirations
Georgia’s new government, led by 36-year-old Prime Minister Mamuka Bakhtadze, apparently intends to focus on improving trade and cultural contacts with Russia under its “Freedom, Rapid Development and Prosperity” program. In more conciliatory language that Moscow has heard in many years, on July 13 Bakhtadze... MORE
Georgia Remains on Path to NATO
Four years ago, then–United States President Barack Obama famously stated that Georgia is not presently on the path to membership in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) (Civil Georgia, March 27, 2014). Nevertheless, Tbilisi persisted in its efforts to maintain ever-closer relations with the transatlantic... MORE
Georgia’s Prime Minister Resigns
Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili announced his resignation, on June 13 (Civil Georgia, June 13). For those following the protest rallies in Tbilisi, Kvirikashvili’s departure may not have seemed particularly unexpected. Thousands of Georgians had, for weeks, gone out into the streets, calling for the... MORE
Southern Gas Corridor Project Opening New Long-Term Opportunities for Europe
Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev, on May 29, officially inaugurated the first phase of his country’s long-awaited flagship Southern Gas Corridor (SGC) project, through which Caspian-basin natural gas (from the offshore Shah-Deniz field) will be transported to Europe (Azernews, May 29). The new project consists of... MORE
Is the Georgian Opposition Capable of ‘Dismantling the System?’
A so-called “Nationwide Protest Action” will be held in the Georgian capital of Tbilisi, on June 10. This decision was made by the Council of Opposition Parties after Georgia’s Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili refused to resign (Kommersant, June 5). The opposition accuses the government of... MORE
Moscow’s Role in the Karabakh Conflict After the ‘Velvet Revolution’ in Armenia
On May 17, the “president” of the separatist occupied Republic of Abkhazia, Raul Khajimba, received representatives of the foreign ministries of the Russian Federation and three separatist territories in the former Soviet space—the “Republic of South Ossetia” (Tskhinvali Region), the “Pridnestrovia Moldova Republic” (Transnistria) and... MORE
Confrontations in Tbilisi Test Georgian Government and Democracy
May 2018 has been a critical test for Georgia. Over the past several weeks, a series of events in the capital of Tbilisi have collectively raised questions in some quarters about the actual level of consolidation of Georgian democracy and have challenged Georgi Kvirikashvili’s government... MORE
US-Georgian Partnership Newly Reinvigorated Following High-Level American Visit
On May 1, A. Wess Mitchell, the US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs, visited the Georgian village of Odzisi (Dusheti District), located on the occupation line between Georgia and its occupied Tskhinvali region (South Ossetia) (Accent.com, May 1). After Moscow took... MORE