The Daily Beat: 9 October
On Sunday, President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev visited Georgia, meeting Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili. Joint statements to the media followed a tête-à-tête meeting between the two leaders, discussing transport, energy, and logistics. According to the official press release, PM Garibashvili and President Aliyev highlighted the importance of advancing the Middle Corridor initiative and railroad modernization project during the meeting. Both Leaders also reiterated their commitment to regional peace, with the Azerbaijani President expressing readiness for engaging in peace talks with Armenian representatives in Georgia. President Salome Zurabishvili was most likely not informed about President Aliyev’s visit.
The Georgian leadership, including the President, Prime Minister, and Speaker of the Parliament, condemned the Hamas attack on Israel, calling it a terrorist act and expressing solidarity with the Israeli government. In its statement, the foreign ministry also condemned Hamas‘s actions, describing it as a horrific terrorist attack on the State of Israel, causing loss of life, expressing solidarity with the Israeli government and people.
President Salome Zurabishvili and PM Irakli Garibashvili reacted to the announcement of the Russian naval base build-up in Ochamchire, a seaside town on the Black Sea coastline of occupied Abkhazia. President Zurabishvili called it an illegal move, threatening Georgia’s European aspirations and Black Sea security, while PM Garibashvili described it as a continuation of Russian occupation. In its statement, the foreign ministry also expressed concern over the announced deployment of another military base in occupied territories, calling on Russia to respect its international obligations and stop the illegal occupation of Georgian regions.
NATO Parliamentary Assembly (NATO PA), in its resolution – “Strengthening Stability and Security in the Black Sea Region Following Russia’s Full Scale Invasion of Ukraine,” among other issues, denounced Russia’s occupation of Georgia. The resolution also condemned the Kremlin’s plan to build a naval base in occupied Abkhazia, reiterating support for Georgia’s eventual NATO membership.
Speaker Shalva Papuashvili claimed that Europe is also partly responsible for polarization in Georgia, accusing Europe of sheltering persons like Mikheil Saakashvili, former defense minister Davit Kezerashvili, and former justice minister Zurab Adeishvili. Speaker Papuashvili believes that the Europeans must also contribute to the de-polarization cause in Georgia by handing over Saakashvili-era high-ranking officials traveling around Europe freely. De-polarization is among the 12 EU conditions required to obtain the EU candidacy.
