Daily Archives: January 26, 2012

Georgia asks Russia to close embassies in breakaway regions

By | January 26th, 2012|Categories: News|Tags: |

TBILISI, DFWatch - The Georgian president says diplomatic relations with Russia will only be restored if Russia closes its illegal embassies in Georgia’s two breakaway regions Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Mikheil Saakashvili's statement comes as a response to what Russian president Dimitry Medevedev said Wednesday; that he wants to restore diplomatic relations with Georgia, [...]

Will election year work as a reset button for Georgian democracy?

By | January 26th, 2012|Categories: Opinion|Tags: , |

Two presidents that came to power under the sign of change meet January 30th. Below are some thoughts elicited by my friend Ambassador K.S. Yalowitz’s letter, writes George Khutsishvili, director of the International Center on Conflict and Negotiation. We live in the election year 2012, and I belong to those who believe change is [...]

Georgia answers Medvedev’s invitation: ‘Any time’

By | January 26th, 2012|Categories: In brief, News|Tags: |

TBILISI, DFWatch - Georgia’s foreign minister says his country never refused to restore negotiations with Russia. Grigol Vashadze made the statement during a session of the Council of Europe's parliamentary assembly, while answering a question from an MP from the Netherlands. After a speech by Vashadzem the Dutch MP wanted to know what his [...]

Medvedev wants to restore diplomatic relations with Georgia

By | January 26th, 2012|Categories: In brief, News|Tags: |

TBILISI, DFWatch - Russian president Dimitry Medvedev says he wants to restore diplomatic relations with Georgia. But the president adds, only if he won’t have to shake hands with one person. That one person is understood to be Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili. Diplomatic relations with Russia and Georgia suspended after the war in 2008, [...]

Report: Press freedom is declining in Georgia

By | January 26th, 2012|Categories: News|Tags: , |

TBILISI, DFWatch - Georgia is no longer the leading country in the South Caucasus in terms of media freedom, according to Reporters Without Borders. Georgia is on a shared 104th place among the 179 countries listed. Last year, Georgia was number 100 on Press Freedom Index, as the ranking list is called. This year's [...]