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Opposition Protests Against Adjarian Parliament Proposal
Leader of the opposition Republican Party Davit Usupashvili spoke against an initiative to bar members of the Parliament of the Adjaran Autonomous Republic to run in Georgia’s parliamentary by-elections scheduled for October 1. ?This initiative from the ruling [National Movement] party is directed particularly against Giorgi Masalki [a Republican Party activist] who is a member …
02/08/2005 - 12:42
Saakashvili Meets Swedish PM
Visiting Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili met with Swedish Prime Minister Goran Persson at the latter?s summer residence in Harpsund on August 1. ?We have gained an important friend in the European Union ? Sweden,? Saakashvili said after the talks. RFE/RL reported that the Swedish Prime Minister?s spokeswoman, Anna Helsen, said before the talks that the …
Georgia, U.S. Hold Joint Navy Exercises
The first-ever joint Georgian-U.S. navy exercises will open on August 2 near Georgia?s Black Sea port of Poti. The USS Nashville and three Georgian vessels will participate in the exercises which will include training in ship rescue operations. This post is also available in: ქართული (Georgian) Русский (Russian)
First Russian Military Convoy Leaves Georgia
A convoy of nine Russian military vehicles crossed Georgia?s northern border and moved into Russia on August 1 after a more than a two-day journey from the Russian military base in Batumi in southwest Georgia. The convoy, which is the first to leave the country after the Foreign Ministers of Georgia and Russia agreed on …
01/08/2005 - 16:14
Russian Chief Negotiator Speaks of Bases, Framework Agreement
In an interview with the Russian news agency Interfax, Igor Savolsky, the Russian Foreign Ministry?s special envoy for CIS affairs and Russia?s chief negotiator in talks over the withdrawal of Russian military bases from Georgia, said that the Russian side spares no efforts to follow the declaration signed by the Georgian and Russian Foreign Ministers over …
Georgian Energy Minister Visits Kazakhstan
Georgian Energy Minister Nika Gilauri and President of the Georgian International Gas Corporation Davit Ingorokva left for Kazakhstan on July 31 to negotiate with Kazakh authorities over the possible supply of gas to Georgia. According to the Georgian Energy Ministry this visit to Kazakhstan is part of the Georgian government’s attempt to diversify its gas …
Tbilisi Seeks International Focus on Abkhazia
The Abkhaz conflict was put on the UN Security Council’s agenda twice last week, but the authorities in Tbilisi want to attract more international attention to this conflict and invite UN Security Council members to pay a fact-finding visit to the breakaway region. On July 27 the Georgian President’s representative for Abkhaz conflict settlement Irakli …
31/07/2005 - 16:18
Saakashvili Visits Sweden
Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili will visit Sweden on July 31-August 4. Saakashvili will reportedly address an international forum in T?llberg, which gathers senior leaders, businessmen and experts from all over the world. This post is also available in: ქართული (Georgian) Русский (Russian)
Military Vehicles Leave Russian Base in Batumi
The first convoy of 9 vehicles left the Russian military base in Batumi, Adjara Autonomous Republic, early on July 30. The convoy which is accompanied by representatives of the Georgian side, left for Vladikavkaz, in Russia?s North Ossetian Republic. The Georgian and Russian Foreign Ministers agreed in May that Russia?s two military bases in Georgia …
30/07/2005 - 13:24
Parliamentary Chairperson Visits Finland
A delegation of Georgian lawmakers led by Parliamentary Chair Nino Burjanadze will pay a working visit to Finland on July 30-August 5. This is the first visit of Georgian MPs to Finland. Nino Burjanadze will hold talks with President, Parliamentary Chairperson and Foreign Minister of that country. This post is also available in: ქართული (Georgian) …
UNOMIG Mandate Extended
On July 29 the UN Security Council extended the mandate of the 12-year-old UN Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG) for the next six months. In a document adopted on July 29, the Council condemned the continued lack of progress on key issues, which has long blocked a comprehensive political settlement of the separatist conflict in Abkhazia and called on both …
Military Equipment to Leave Batumi Base on July 30
Officials from the Headquarters of the Russian Troops in the Trans Caucasus and the Georgian General Staff of the Armed Forces agreed during talks on July 29 that the first convoy of Russian armored vehicles will leave the Russian military base in Batumi on July 30. The launch of the withdrawal of a part of …
Tags: Salome Zurabishvili
29/07/2005 - 17:41
Borjomi Competes with Six Cities to Host Winter Olympics
The International Olympic Committee announced on July 29 that seven cities have placed bids to host the 2014 Olympic Winter Games. These seven cities are: Almaty (Kazakhstan), Borjomi (Georgia), Jaca (Spain), PyeongChang (South Korea), Salzburg (Austria), Sochi (Russia) and Sofia (Bulgaria). Georgia applied to host the games in June. ?I am confident that we will win …
Russian Military Equipment Withdrawal Delayed
The launch of the withdrawal of a part of Russian armored vehicles from the military base in Batumi, Adjara Autonomous Republic has been postponed indefinitely, said Deputy Commander of the Headquarters of the Russian Troops in the Trans Caucasus, Col. Vladimir Kuparadze on July 29. The withdrawal was scheduled to get underway on July 29 ?The reason for the delay …
Russia Wants Georgia to Issue Entry Visas for Servicemen
Russian Defense Minister Sergey Ivanov told reporters in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatski on July 28 that Russia is concerned with the Georgian Foreign Ministry?s refusal to issue entry visas to Russian servicemen deployed at the military bases in Batumi and Akhalkalaki. ?We are concerned about the absence of visas for Russian servicemen, who have to prepare the military hardware on our bases …
Newspaper: Alleged Gori Blast Mastermind is a Mercenary
The Georgian daily Rezonansi published its own probe into the identity of Anatoly Sysoev, who Georgia’s Interior Minister Vano Merabishvili said was an agent of Russian military intelligence and the mastermind behind the February 1 blast in Gori that killed three policemen. According to Rezonansi, Anatoly Sysoev was born in 1950 in Tbilisi and served in …
Khaindrava: Beslan not an Issue for Political Wrangling
Georgian Minister for Conflict Resolution Giorgi Khaindrava said that the Beslan tragedy in North Ossetia, where innocent children died in a terrorist siege, is “not an issue for political wrangling.” Khaindrava was commenting on yesterdays’s statement of the head of South Ossetian interior ministry Mikhail Mindzaev who said “we know that the terrorist act in Beslan …
28/07/2005 - 19:17
Ivanov: Claims on Russian Trail in Terrorism “Depressingly Stupid”
Russian Defense Minister Sergey Ivanov called “depressingly stupid” media reports on the possible participation of Russian military intelligence in terrorist acts abroad, including the one in Gori, Georgia this February 1. Talking to Russian journalists in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskii, Ivanov said that “Russian military intelligence, in the last year, if we trust the reports of foreign media, has …
Labor Party Leader: Bush Grenade Incident “Staged”
Leader of the radical opposition Labor Party Shalva Natelashvili said at a news conference on July 28 that the incident involving the tossing of a hand-grenade during U.S. President Bush?s public speech in Tbilisi was staged by the Georgian government. ?This was carried out by the special services of [Georgian President Mikheil] Saakashvili as a …
Russian Military Convoy Released after Resolving ‘Misunderstanding’
A convoy of four Russian military trucks and four armored vehicles was released by the Georgian border guard service after the Russian side submitted the necessary documentation authorizing them to transport arms. The convoy, which was en route from the Akhalkalaki military base to Armenia, was shortly detained after Georgian border guards found five machine …
Georgia Detains Russian Military Convoy
A Russian military convoy en route from the Akhalkalaki military base to Armenia was detained on July 28 by the Georgian Border Guard Service at the Armenian border after recovering five machine guns in one of the armored vehicles, the Georgian Border Guard Department reported. The convoy, which is currently at the Armenian border, consists of …
U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary Visits Georgia
U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Matthew Bryza arrived in Tbilisi for a two-day visit to meet with Georgian government officials and civil society leaders and discuss the strengthening of democratic institutions and peaceful resolutions to regional conflicts, the U.S. Embassy in Tbilisi reported. The U.S. official has already met …
Tags: Salome Zurabishvili
S.Ossetian Defense Chief Speaks of Priorities
In an interview with the South Ossetian Press and Information Committee on July 27, Defense Minister of breakaway South Ossetia Anatoly Barankevich spoke about some of the details of priorities of the unrecognized republic?s armed forces. He said that skills of the South Ossetian armed forces have been increased ?significantly? since armed clashes with the …
Tbilisi Offers Tskhinvali, Moscow to Probe into Gori Blast
In a letter sent to the authorities of breakaway South Ossetia, Russia and Russia?s North Ossetian Republic on July 27, Georgian State Minister for Conflict Resolution Issues Giorgi Khaindrava offered to dispatch a group of experts who will probe into the investigation of the Gori car bomb explosion, which killed three policemen in February. ?We …
CEC Sets Date for MP By-Election
On July 27 the Central Election Commission set October 1, 2005 as the date for holding MP by-elections in Georgia?s five single-mandate constituencies. MP by-elections will be held in Kobuleti, Batumi and Shuakhevi, single-mandate constituencies in the Adjara Autonomous Republic, as well as in the Tkibuli constituency in western Georgia and capital city Tbilisi?s Isani …
27/07/2005 - 18:38
Tbilisi Plays Down Cooperation of Secessionist Leaders
Eduard Kokoity (left) and Sergey Bagapsh at the latter’s inauguration in Sokhumi. February, 2005.The Kommersant photo. The signing of a communique on cooperation between the breakaway republics of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, which the sides say will soon grow into a comprehensive agreement on cooperation, was downplayed by Tbilisi as “not serious.”The Leaders of Abkhazia …
Abkhazia, South Ossetia to Sign Comprehensive Agreement
After signing a communiqu? on cooperation in Abkhaz town of Gagra on July 26, the leaders of breakaway Abkhazia and South Ossetia will sign, as they said, a comprehensive agreement between the two unrecognized republics? in South Ossetian capital Tskhinvali in ?nearest future,? the Abkhaz news agency Apsnipress reported. ?Singing of this communiqu? confirms unity …
Kiev Denies Terrorism Threat Prevented Yushchenko’s Visit
In a phone interview with Tbilisi-based Imedi television Irina Gerashchenko, spokesperson of the Ukrainian President, denied speculations that the reason of postponement of Victor Yushchenko?s visit to Georgia was alleged terrorism threat. Georgian daily Rezonansi [Resonance] reported on July 27 that Victor Yushchenko, who planned to visit Georgian on July 26-29, postponed visit because of …
‘Dangerous Substances’ Found in Grenade Suspect’s Home
Vladimer Arutunian in hospital room.The Interior Ministry photo. Georgian Interior Minister Vano Merabishvili and General Prosecutor Zurab Adeishvili said on July 27 that “huge amount” of “very dangerous substances” have been recovered by the FBI experts from the basement of home belonging to Vladimer Arutunian, who is suspected in tossing a hand-grenade during the U.S. …
Tbilisi Urges Moscow to Cooperate in Capturing Terrorist Suspects
In a statement issued on July 27 the Georgian Foreign Ministry urged Russia to assist Georgia in capturing those persons who are suspected in carrying out series of terrorist acts in Georgia?s Shida Karti region in 2004. ?Persons who have carried out terrorist act in Gori on February 1, 2005 have already been arrested. Identities …
Saakashvili Urges Media not to Stress Ethnic Origins of Criminal Suspects
President Saakashvili said on July 26 that it is inadmissible to make focus on ethnic origins of the criminal suspects, who have been recently arrested for Bush grenade incident and Gori car bomb explosion. ?Media often speaks about Armenian origins [of Vladimer Arutunian, who is suspected in Bush grenade incident] and about the fact that …
Tbilisi, Moscow Near Agreement on Bases’ Pullout Routes
Officials from the Georgian and Russian Foreign Ministry ?mainly finalized? text of an agreement over ?organization of transit? of military cargo and hardware from the Russian military bases stationed in Georgia, the Russian Foreign Ministry reported in its information note issued on July 26. The meeting between the sides was held in Moscow on July …
Saakashvili Reiterates Readiness to Cooperate with Russia
President Saakashvili warned on July 26 that Georgia ?will no longer tolerate? presence of criminals on uncontrolled territories and called on Russia once again for cooperation in resolving conflicts in Georgia. Saakashvili was speaking at the meeting with the Georgian policemen, whom the President thanked for solving Bush grenade incident and Gori car bomb explosion. …
26/07/2005 - 21:43
Kokoity, Bagapsh Meet in Gagra
Leaders of breakaway Abkhazia and South Ossetia Sergey Bagapsh and Eduard Kokoity, respectively, held second meeting for past two days in Abkhaz town of Gagra on July 26 and signed joint communique on cooperation between the two unrecognized republics, Abkhaz news agency Apsnipress reported. The meeting which was described by the Abkhaz sources as ?official? …
MIA Issues Video Interview with Gori Blast Suspect
On July 26 Georgian Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) issued video footage showing one of the suspects in Gori car bomb explosion, speaking about military training which he and a group of Ossetians underwent under the supervision of the Russian military intelligence operatives. Gia Valiev, who reportedly is ethnic Georgia ? Valishvili but has changed name …
Grenade Suspect Charged with Terrorism
Vladimer Arutunian who is suspected of tossing a hand-grenade during the U.S. President Bush?s speech in Tbilisi was charged with terrorism on July 26. Initially, criminal charges were brought against Arutunian, who was captured after fatal clash with police on July 20, for premeditated murder in the killing a security official. Arutunian was sentenced to …
Tskhinvali Condemns Arrest of Gori Blast Suspects
Authorities in breakaway South Ossetia condemned Georgian police operation in the South Ossetian conflict zone which resulted in arrest of Ossetians, who are suspected by the Georgian side in carrying out deadly car bomb explosion in Gori in February, as violation of agreements reached in frames of quadripartite Joint Control Commission (JCC). Secretary of the …
Research: Georgia’s Economic Freedom Index Worsened
According to the annual publication by the Heritage Foundation/Wall Street Journal ? Index of Economic Freedom-2005, Georgia?s overall score has worsened by 0,15 points since last year reaching 3.34 points, as a result the country still remains in the ?mostly unfree? category. The 2005 Index of Economic Freedom measures 161 countries. Low scores are more …
Two Media Organizations Set Up
Two media organizations ? Media Council and Press Council ? were set up on July 25. The first one makes focus more on self-regulation and monitoring of professional standards and ethics in reporting, while second one will be focused on protection of journalists from government?s pressure. The Media Council was founded by up to 20, both …
Russia Denies Link to Gori Blast
In an information note issued on July 25 the Russian Foreign Ministry denied Georgia?s allegations about involvement of Russian intelligence services in a car bomb explosion in Gori in February, which resulted to death of three policemen. ?The Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs deems it necessary to state, that the Russian side has nothing to do …
Georgia Says Russian Intelligence Behind Deadly Blast in Gori
Three policemen died in Gori car explosionon February 1, 2005. REUTERS photo. Georgian Interior Minister Vano Merabishvili alleged on July 25 that agents of Russia’s Main Intelligence Administration (GRU – Glavnoye Razvedovatelnoye Upravlenie) were behind a car bomb explosion in Gori on February 1, which resulted in the death of three Georgian policemen.He said that …
25/07/2005 - 19:29
Saakashvili Comments on Gori Blast Investigation
President Saakashvili hailed the Georgian police and counter-intelligence service for arresting three suspects in a car bomb explosion in Gori, which killed three policemen in February. Saakashvili said that despite the evidence which proves involvement of Russian intelligence services in this terrorist act, Georgia ?does not want to use it for further confrontation with Russia.? …
S.Ossetia denies Link to Gori Blast
In a phone interview with Rustavi 2 television Special Affairs Minister of breakaway South Ossetia denied on July 25 the unrecognized republic?s involvement in organizing deadly car bomb explosion in Gori in February. Georgian Interior Minister Vano Merabishvili said on July 25 that the Georgian law enforcers arrested three suspects in South Ossetian conflict zone. …
Armenian PM Meets Georgian Leadership
Visiting Armenian Prime Minister Andranik Margaryan met with Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili and Parliamentary Chairperson Nino Burjanadze on July 25 in Tbilisi. Margaryan said after talks with Burjanadze that bilateral economic cooperation and joint measure for social rehabilitation projects in Armenian-populated Samtskhe-Javakheti region in southern Georgia were discussed. ?In the course of this year USD …
Abkhaz, S.Ossetian Leaders Meet
President?s of unrecognized republics of Abkhazia and South Ossetia Sergey Bagapsh and Eduard Kokoity, respectively, met in Abkhaz town of Gagra on July 25, the Abkhaz news agency Apsnipress reported. According to this report South Ossetian leader Eduard Kokoity spends a vacation in Abkhazia with his family. Cooperation between the unrecognized republics and coordination of …
FBI Probes Grenade Suspect’s Home
On July 25 a group of experts were examining apartment and a basement of Vladimer Arutunian, who is suspected of throwing a hand-grenade during U.S. President Bush’s speech in Tbilisi on May 10. No details of this probe are known yet, but the footage broadcasted by the Georgian televisions showed U.S. experts working on the …
Georgian Minister: Russian Intelligence Service Behind Gori Blast
Georgian Interior Minister Vano Merabishvili alleged on July 25 that agents of Russia?s Main Intelligence Administration (GRU – Glavnoye Razvedovatelnoye Upravlenie) were behind a car bomb explosion in Gori on February 1, which resulted in death of three Georgian policemen. He said that the law enforcers arrested in the South Ossetian conflict zone two persons …
Russian Ambassador Meets Interior Minister
Russian Ambassador in Georgia Vladimir Chkhikvishvili held a short meeting with Georgian Interior Minister Vano Merabishvili on July 25. Neither Vano Merabishvili, nor Vladimir Chkhikvishvili made comments after the meeting, which took place in the Interior Ministry. This post is also available in: ქართული (Georgian) Русский (Russian)
Reports: Three Suspects in Gori Blast Arrested
Tbilisi-based Mze television reported on July 25 that the police have arrested three persons allegedly suspected in car bomb explosion in central Georgian town of Gori on February 1, which resulted in death of three policemen. No official confirmation of this report has emerged so far. But Interior Minister Vano Merabishvili plans a news conference …
Tbilisi, Moscow Discuss Routes of Bases’ Withdrawal
Officials from Georgian and Russian Foreign Ministries will meet in Moscow on July 25-26 to discuss route of withdrawal of the Russian military armament and hardware from two military bases in Georgia. “During these talks we will discuss the issues, which remain unsolved, including issues related with the routes of withdrawal and means of withdrawal,” …
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This post is also available in: ქართული (Georgian) Русский (Russian)