TBILISI, DFWatch — Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili says Georgia’s foreign policy course is unchanged and doesn’t need constitutional guarantees.

He also says that the country will restore its territorial integrity and mend relations with Russia.

The National Movement party has repeatedly criticized the new government for its foreign policy, claiming that it does not follow the course of Euro-Atlantic integration, because Ivanishvili has said one of his priorities is to improve relations with Russia.

There have been no diplomatic relations between Russia and Georgia after the war in August 2008.

The National Movement party demands to have it written into the constitution that Georgia’s western course is unchanged, but it is unclear how this is to be done in practice, as the constitution normally doesn’t regulate such issues.

Georgia started improving relations with Russia by working to return Georgian product to the Russian market, and some achievements are already been made.

The prime minister Tuesday said he was encouraged by the prospect of Georgia getting its wine and mineral water back onto the Russian market.

He underlined that the Russian market ‘cannot be simple’ and Georgian companies shouldn’t have any illusions.


Bidzina Ivanishvili says this still doesn’t mean changing the country’s western course, and the US remains Georgia’s strategic partner. He said the government has established good relations with the US administration.

Last Wednesday, the parliamentary minority proposed a bill regarding Georgia’s unchanged foreign policy course.

It said that Georgia will steadily continue to join Euro-Atlantic structures and Georgia will never join organizations where Russia is a dominating country.