Ivanov Speaks of Russo-Georgian Ties

Russian Defense Minister Sergey Ivanov said in an interview with the Italian newspaper La Stampa that Russian-Georgian relations are worsening and noted that ties can only be improved if relations are based on mutual beneficial relations.

Ivanov commented on Russo-Georgian relations while answering a question about Moscow’s position regarding Georgia and Ukraine’s aspirations to joint NATO. A text of the interview was reprinted on the official web-site of the Russian Ministry of Defense on February 9.

“The Russian leadership thinks that any sovereign state has the right to decide for itself how to ensure its security and this or that measures of any state should be adequate to existing military threats. But these measures should not weaken the security of neighboring states, including those of Russia,” Ivanov said.

“For Russia the issue of Ukraine’s membership in NATO is especially sensitive,” he added.

But he noted that Russia is not “dramatizing the situation. Because stereotypes of the Cold War based on confrontation between the blocs are in the past.

“However, advancement of a military bloc to our borders is not very pleasant, but [it is] not fatal either,” he said.

“The Georgian leadership thinks that Russia tries to ‘conserve’ the conflicts in Abkhazia and South Ossetia, [but Georgia] is the one to blame for [worsening ties]… So Georgia considers a strong presence by the United States in the South Caucasus a key element in strengthening the region and a counterbalance to the so called ‘neo-imperial ambitions’ of Russia,” Ivanov said.

But, he continued, Georgia at the same time also tries to have “cheap” energy resources. 

“The Georgian leadership understands very well that without Russia it will fail to deal with persisting problems in the country related with energy issues and tries to gain Russian support for obtaining cheap energy resources,” Ivanov said.

“Of course this kind of situation is not favorable for us, as the criteria for any kind of cooperation is mutual beneficial relations… This is the very criteria which should dominate in the establishment of a modern system of international relations in the South Caucasus,” Sergey Ivanov said.