TBILISI, DFWatch – Abkhazia, the Georgian breakaway republic, last Saturday held the last of two election rounds for parliament. A closer look reveals that ethnic Abkhaz have a stronger representation among those who were elected. In fact, the majority of elected MPs are […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The Georgian parliament asks the international community to help keep a watch on the restoration work planned at several historical sites in Abkhazia. This comes a few days after Alexander Ankvab, de facto president of Abkhazia, spoke about an initiative […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – If there were elections tomorrow 47 percent would vote for the party of President Mikheil Saakashvili, the National Movement, according to a survey by the U.S. National Democratic Institute. The Georgian Dream coalition of Bidzina Ivanishvili […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – An opposition activist who first spoke out about the alleged paramilitary groups in Western Georgia has been arrested in Zugdidi. Vako Avaliani, spokesperson for the opposition Free Democrats party, told DF Watch that that Kakha Mikaia was arrested on […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – An opposition party in Georgia that claimed President Saakashvili is organizing political paramilitaries reports that one of its members has been arrested. Information about the arrest of Sergo Chachibaia, a member of the Free Democrats Party, was […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Tbilisi does not recognize last weekend’s elections for parliament and president in Georgia’s breakaway regions Abkhazia and South Ossetia, respectively. Nino Kalandadze, Deputy Foreign Minister of Georgia said at one of her regular briefings that […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Tuesday, the results of a reguler opinion poll done by the National Democratic Institute (NDI) are expected. Although regular, the results are eagerly awaited because they will indicate the political landscape seven months before an election which will […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Leonid Tibilov, a former head of the KGB in Georgia’s breakaway region South Ossetia beat the other three candidates in the president elections Sunday. In the region’s previous attempt to select a leader, an opposition candidate won against the Kremlin […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The breakaway republic Abkhazia Sunday completed its 2012 parliamentary election by holding a second round of voting. There was voting in 20 districts this time. The region has a first past the post system, and these districts out of a total of 35 needed […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – For the second time in a month, there has been a death during police questioning in Georgia. The Interior Ministry does not say when it happened, only that took place at Gori police station. Tamaz Jghamadze was asked to come to the police in Gori to […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgia’s breakaway region South Ossetia Sunday held presidential elections. By 10 in the morning, 11% of voters had visited election precincts; a high turnout, according to the Central Election Committee of the region. Interfax reports that Tskhinvali […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgia’s Patriarch, Ilia II, told foreign diplomats that their assistance is needed for the difficult election period his country is heading into. Ilia, who has great influence among the population, appealed to the diplomats during a ceremony Friday […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Abkhazia today holds the second round of the elections for parliament. 20 constituencies are selecting a candidate in a first past the post system. In the first round, March 10, 13 candidates were chosen, out of a total of 35. In one district, less […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Today it is twenty years since Georgia and the U.S. established diplomatic relations. Marking the occasion, the U.S. Embassy writes in a press release that since 1992, hundreds of Peace Corps volunteers have come to Georgia and over five thousand […]
March 20, opposition politician Irakli Alasania sent a letter to Georgia’s National Security Council, detailing what he claims is a paramilitary force set up by President Saakashvili within the last few months, which could be used against opposition supporters. The government […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The first forum organized by the EU’s Eastern Partnership is being held in Tbilisi’s Radisson Hotel. It is jointly hosted by the office of State Minister of Georgia on European and Euro-Atlantic Integration and the Institute for Eastern Studies, Poland. […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The visa rules between Georgia and Lebanon will be simplified, the two countries’ prime minister have decided. Georgian Prime Minister Nika Gilauri yesterday left for a two day visit to Lebanon. There, he met the President, the Speaker of Parliament […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The confirmation hearing for the next U.S. Ambassador to Georgia has made waves in the country of his assignment. One senator asked Richard B. Norland to supervise the democratic processes in the country. In Georgia, the hearing has been interpreted […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The World Bank has granted Georgia two new loans. The loans total 130 million US dollars and will go to finance infrastructural development and rehabilitation of the roads in the eastern Kakheti region. 70 million US dollars was approved by the World Bank […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Alla Dzhioyeva, the defiant opposition leader in Georgia’s breakaway South Ossetia, asks her supporters to vote in Sunday’s election. She herself, however, is boycotting the poll. She was the apparent winner of last November’s election, which the region’s […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgia’s breakaway region South Ossetia is preparing for another presidential election. The poll on March 25 will be the region’s second attempt, after the first one failed and led to a still unresolved protest campaign by the winner to claim victory. […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has appointed a special representative to South Ossetia, five days after awarding the same kind of job title in regards to Abkhazia, the other Georgian breakaway region. The person in charge of South Ossetia, the arena […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgia’s Interior Ministry said March 21 that all armed groups are under the control of the government. “There are no other armed units, cannot be and won’t be,” said Shota Utiashvilil, head of the Interior Ministry’s press and analytical department. […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The U.S. National Democratic Institute today presented its latest findings about public attitudes in Georgia. The survey was conducted in February 2012 by Caucasus Research Resource Centers (CRRC). The topics for the questionnaire covered the themes […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – A pro-democracy campaign in the former Soviet republic Georgia is noting a slight progress as parliament Wednesday took into account their criticism. The groups have said that recent changes to the campaign finance rules pose a threat to democracy. […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The former Soviet republic of Georgia has made the building of Lazika, a hypothetical metropol on the Black Sea, one of its top priorities. The Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili announced the plan at the end of 2011. He said Georgia plans to build […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgian border police Monday detained a Russian cargo ship carrying coal across the Black Sea from Ukraine to Turkey. The Pur-Navolok is now in arrest in the Georgian port Batumi with its Russian crew of ten. Preliminary information indicates that […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – An opposition candidate Tuesday presented details about an alleged secret paramilitary organization he claims was recently organized by President Mikheil Saakashvili in western Georgia. Leader of the Free Democrats Irakli Alasania had called the press […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgia is to send a task group to Malaysia to study the situation regarding two Georgians sentenced to death for drug related crimes. Babutsa Gordadze (26) and Darejan Kokhtashvili (37) were arrested in Malaysia in October 2010, accused of trafficking […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – In Georgia, a vague new law is on its way to be clarified, as non-governmental organizations (NGOs) continue their negotiations with parliament’s judiciary committee to amend the law about political unions of citizens. The concept of ‘related legal […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Parliamentarians in Georgia are awaiting the testimony of the chairman of the country’s Chamber of Control, a controversial agency recently vested with broad extrajudicial powers. Parliament will hear Chamber chairman Levan Bezhashvili explain what’s going […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Four non-governmental organizations in Georgia Monday for the third time met with parliament’s judicial committee about the new law on party financing, called ‘law on political unions of citizens’. Georgian Young Lawyers Organization, Transparency International […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgia’s foreign ministry says the U.S. State Department has confirmed to them that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is coming to Georgia in the near future. But the exact date has yet to be announced. Deputy Foreign Minister Nino Kalanadadze says […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili has dismissed the charges made by one of the opposition leaders that he was preparing for civil war as a campaign move ahead of the parliamentary election in October. He was responding to something the Free […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgia’s former UN ambassador, now an opposition leader, says that President Mikheil Saakashvili’s apparatus is organizing paramilitary groups and handing out weapons in preparation for a civil war in the power struggle ahead of the election this October. […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The Council of Europe is to examine moves by the government of Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili made ahead of a crucial parliamentary election in October. The Advisory Board of the Council of Europe’s Venice Commission has put it on the agenda of […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – A report from an Israeli news agency contradicts what the Georgian government is saying about negotiations over visa rules between the two countries. New agency Izrus writes that Israeli officials acknowledge that there are going to be negotiations […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – After a top Georgian lawmaker and the foreign ministry came out with critical remarks about a statement by Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov about visa rules, Georgia’s security council chief also added his comments. Security Council Secretary Giga […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The Georgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Thursday responded to a request by Russian Foreign Affairs Minister Sergey Lavrov the day before that Georgia should cancel a law that targets some Russians as criminals for having visited Georgia’s breakaway regions. […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Germany wants to send in extra long-term election observers to Georgia ahead of an important parliamentary election which sees two political blocs for the first time competing against each other. The extra observers will be working for the European Union, […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The U.S. Ambassador to Georgia, John Bass, has expressed concern about the wave of interrogations carried out by the Georgian Chamber of Control. “Concerned about the controversy surrounding the Chamber of Control’s recent […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgia is not going to abolish the law on occupied territories before Russia starts pulling back its occupying troops from Abkhazia and South Ossetia. This was the response Georgia’s ruling party had to a statement by Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The Georgian Patriarch congratules Vladimir Putin with having been elected as president of Russia. Polls have shown Patriarch Ilia II to be the most respected person among the Georgian population. His administration has published the text of the […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – A bill in Georgia will entitle the president to issue secret acts if the country’s defense and security is at stake. Not only the president will have this right, but also the ministries of defense, internal affairs, justice, finance and energy and natural […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – A two day business conference was launched in Tbilisi Wednesday called Making Business with USA. The conference is the result of an agreement between U.S. President Barack Obama and Georgia’s Mikheil Saakashvili to hold high level dialog between their […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Russia is ready to cancel its visa requirements for Georgian citizens if Georgia changes the law about the occupied territories, says Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. According to the law, Russian citizens who go to Abkhazia or South Ossetia can […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The opposition Christian Democratic Movement blames the government of having adopted a law which discriminates against women. Representative of the Christian Democrats Magda Anikashvili said this on March 13 at a parliament session. She says that before […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Do you know what “NGO” means? If not, look out. You might be targeted by their next campaign to raise awareness. They have been on the streets of Georgia demonstrating for democratic rights, and their ads are on TV promoting the environment. […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili will attend the 2012 Nuclear Security Summit to be held March 27-28 in Seoul, South Korea. The president’s press spokesperson Manana Manjgaladze said this at a regular briefing Tuesday. According to the summit’s […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – American defense officials Tuesday visited Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili to talk about a biological research facility which opened near Tbilisi one year ago. The Central Public Health Reference Laboratory is a joint American-Georgian cooperation, […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The Chamber of Control has started a wave of interrogations in western Georgia. People are being called in for questioning at local government buildings. The coalition Choice for Freedom says the letter calling people in for talks does not give any […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The delegations of the U.S. and the EU in Georgia do not recognize the recent de facto parliamentary elections in Abkhazia as legitimate. Both have releases statements expressing support for Georgia’s territorial integrity. “The United States […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Eastern Partnership Georgia appeals to the EU for help in the case of party financing rules. Authorities in Georgia enforced new tough restrictions on party financing last December, and made the rules apply also to organizations and individuals ‘indirectly’ […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The Georgian Chamber of Control keeps using its newly granted authority and fines a Georgian billionaire turned politician’s bank 822 040 lari (about 498 000 US dollars) for avoiding the law during financial transactions. In a statement, the Chamber […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili Monday responded to a Russian invitation to reestablish diplomatic relations by saying Georgians will fight Russia in the parliamentary election this fall. Saakashvili is being challenged in October’s election by a new coalition headed by […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgian Speaker of Parliament, Davit Bakradze, March 12 began an official visit to Israel. Bakradze has been invited by Knesset Speaker Reuven Rivlin, according to the parliament press office. During his stay, Bakradze will have meetings with Israeli […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – There will be a second round of the de facto elections for parliament in the Georgian breakaway region Abkhazia, because representatives were elected from only 13 electoral districts out of a total of 35. Abkhazia is a part of Georgia currently occupied […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgia halted the flow of Russian natural gas to Armenia on Saturday, due to a technical accident on the pipeline caused by a landslide near the village of Mamkoda near Tbilisi. Energy minister Alexander Khetaguri said Saturday that […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Abkhazia, one of Georgia’s two breakaway regions, Saturday held parliamentary elections. According to the de facto Central Election Commission, voter turnout was 29.25% in 174 electoral districts by 15:00. This increased to 37.6% turnout by 18:00. […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – U.S. Marines have arrived in the former Soviet republic of Georgia to hold a two week exercise with the Georgian fourth infantry brigade. The joint exercise lasts from 10 to 24 March and takes place at Vaziani military base less than an hour’s drive […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili is being criticized for his speech in the parliament of neighboring Azerbaijan. A member of the Azerbaijani parliament calls Saakashvili an adventurer (авантюрист). News agency Regnum.ru reports this, […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Foreign direct investment in Georgia is increasing dramatically, and much of it comes from companies registered in the British Virgin Island, a known tax haven with low transparency. Foreign direct investments increased by 58% in the […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Theophilos III, the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem, is unfamiliar with there being negotiations regarding returning church control over the Monastery of the Cross to Georgia. The Patriarch said this in an exclusive interview with the online portal […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – NATO is to strengthen its efforts to further democratic reforms in Georgia as part of preparing the country for membership in the alliance. “Today we also have an opportunity to reinforce further the cooperation between NATO and Georgia through supporting […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – A lawmaker in Georgia confirms that there were negotiations with Russia about setting up a counter-terrorism center together. It was Georgia’s Vice Speaker of Parliament, Mikheil Machavariani, who Thursday responded to something the president-elect of […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – A billionaire newcomer politician in the former Soviet republic of Georgia criticizes a radical opposition leader for mismanagement involving a violent clash last spring. The movement People’s Assembly mobilized all across the country in 2011, […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The days are long gone when Georgian leader Mikheil Saakashvili spoke of Vladimir Putin’s height, while the Russian leader said he wanted to hang Saakashvili by his private parts. Yesterday’s speeches by both shows that relations between them have […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – An opposition billionaire in the former Soviet republic of Georgia Tuesday had meetings with representatives for the movement behind a protest wave which ended in a fatal clash with police in May 2011. Bidzina Ivanishvili met with People’s Assembly, […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgia’s leader Mikheil Saakashvili Wednesday went on the offensive against newly elected Russian president Vladimir Putin’s brainchild; a Eurasian union, to encompass most of what was formerly part of the Soviet Union. „Any attempt to resurrect the […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Campaigners in the former Soviet republic of Georgia are asking the European Union and the OSCE for help to prevent Mikheil Saakasvhili from rigging the election this fall. Pro-democracy groups have been campaigning since December last year to reverse […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili met his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev March 6 during a two-day visit to the country. A press release from the Azerbaijani president’s administration says that the two expressed satisfaction with how […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgia’s Interior Ministry has fired a local police chief after a controversial death of a suspect under interrogation. The ministry says in a statement dated March 6 that the head of Khashuri police station, where a detainee died under suspicious […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgia increases its sentencing of hate crimes. A new bill to amend the Criminal Code will make it mandatory for courts to use the maximum sentence if the crime was motivated by racial, linguistic, religious, national or ethnic prejudice. For every […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Where exactly does Europe end and Asia start? Some say it’s the Likhi mountain range, which separates Georgia’s western and eastern parts. Regardless of how Europe’s geographical extent is measured, the cultural connection to Europe has long been a […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Secretary General of NATO Anders Fogh Rasmussen reiterates that Georgia is eligible for membership in the alliance sometime in the future when all criteria are met. Fogh Rasmussen said this at a regular briefing when asked by journalists how a potential […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – A new law in the former Soviet republic of Georgia has led to several international organizations reconsidering their democracy building activities. The law was supposed to strengthen transparency in the election campaign this year and next, but a broad […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – School children in Georgia are given as home assignment to ‘like’ their leaders. Having a popular official Facebook page has become essential to public figures of Georgia. Users of the social networking site in the former Soviet republic recently started […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – 92.77% of the voters in South Ossetia voted for Vladimir Putin as president of Russia. In the other breakaway republic Abkhazia, 90.94% of voters supported Putin in the presidential elections. 15,839 voters participated in the election in South Ossetia, Ria […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The Georgian Interior Minister says his ministry’s preliminary findings show that the death of a prisoner at a regional police station was an accident, but that it is outrageous that something like this could happen. Following the death of Solomon […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili Saturday unveiled another home produced weapon system; a Georgian version of the Grad multiple rocket launcher. According to the EU’s investigation into the August 2008 war, he ordered his army to use Grads, also […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – A Georgian beach resort came under machine gun and rocket propelled grenade fire last night. According to a statement on the Georgian Interior Ministry’s website, the attack started at 03:20 at night and lasted for ten minutes. No-one was injured. The […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Confusion continues over a detainee’s suspicious death at a police station, after a Georgian website released photos of the victim, Solomon Kimeridze, showing bodily injuries which could be the result of torture. Yesterday evening, all three national […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Russia offers Georgia visa-free travel and to restore diplomatic relations, but not without conditions. The Russian foreign ministry says in a statement on its website that Georgia first must create a ‘reliable legal environment’ that can guarantee […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili has set up a new board of military advisers in the Defense Ministry. The point of having the new advisors there is to aid in the transformation process of Georgia’s armed forces. The advisors will analyze […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The inflation rate fell to minus 2.1% in February, as an estimate for year as a whole. This the first deflation since August 2009. The drop is mainly due to falling prices of food and non-alcoholic beverages. According to figures released March 2 by […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The Georgian president, Mikheil Saakashvili, have been given even more power to manage the sale of state property. Parliament has adopted a law which gives the president freedom to set the period of payment for state property when selling real estate […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The former Soviet republic of Georgia is seeing a steady increase in foreigners visiting. Iranians account for the highest growth in visits. According to the country’s Interior Ministry, 38.9% more foreigners arrived in Georgia in 2011, compared to […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The government in the former Soviet republic of Georgia is liberalizing its policy on drug addiction. According to authorities, drug addiction will no longer be considered a crime. Drug abuse will still be punished with fines, but the money from such […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – President Mikheil Saakashvili hopes a deep and comprehensive free trade agreement with the EU will make unemployment disappear in Georgia. Saakashvili made his statement while visiting an Abipharm pharmaceutical plant in the village Tserovani near […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The Georgian Public Defender calls for an objectively investigation into the death of Solomon Kimeridze. “The cause of death should be found; also whether he was a victim of inhumane and severe treatment,” says a recent statement by the Public […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The Civil Registry is out of time to give a written response regarding opposition businessman Bidzina Ivanishvili’s Georgian citizenship, his lawyers say. On January 5, his lawyers filed an application to the Civil Registry asking to give Ivanshvili […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgia’s Constitutional Court has decided that parliament did not have the right to give prosecutors powers to conduct secret wiretappings. Tamar Khidasheli and Georgian Young Lawyers Association filed a lawsuit at the Constitutional Court regarding […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The ‘This Affects You Too’ campaign continues to push for amendments to recent new rules that they say restricts freedom of speech, property rights, the right to political activism, right to assembly and independence more generally. Today, […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – A Russian Duma member calls Georgia’s lifting of visa rules for Russians propaganda. Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili said in his annual speech to parliament Tuesday night that he would drop visa requirements for all Russian citizens. Today, […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The political party For a Renewed Georgia will today open a regional office in Mtskheta-Mtianeti north of Tbilisi for refugees from the Akhalgori region. Party leaders will meet residents of Tsilknisi and Tserovani, two villages where most of the refugees […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Only four candidates have been approved to participate in the March 25 election to fill the post as president of the de facto republic of South Ossetia, a Georgian breakaway region currently occupied by Russia. Today the Central Election Commission […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – President Mikheil Saakashvili Tuesday February 28 gave his address to parliament and summarized the country’s situation as required by the Georgian Constitution. The leader grouped his political plans into five main points: Tackling unemployment, […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Israeli officials deny that there are in talks with Georgia about handing over control over the Monastery of the Cross in Jerusalem. “This is news for us. We have heard nothing like that,” Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Yigal Palmor said, […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – There were tough exchanges in the Georgian parliament yesterday, with President Mikheil Saakashvili at one point leaving the room after recommending an opponent to take a therapeutic mud bath to get rid of his delusions. The situation became so heated that […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – From this year, Georgians who sign up with a private or vocational school for learning a new profession will receive a 1 000 lari voucher from the government. This was announced by President Mikheil Saakashvili during an annual speech to parliament […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The president in Georgia promises health insurance for all large families from 2013. Mikheil Saakashvili was making his annual address to parliament February 28. He noted that after establishing this system in Georgia, one out of two will be insured. […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The president of the former Soviet republic of Georgia says this fall’s parliamentary election will be an important exam and says “conducting the freest elections which have ever been conducted is a question of national security.” Mikheil Saakashvili […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili says his political force ‘has the resources to govern for many years and will never refuse this.’ The statement came during an annual speech to parliament Tuesday. Giorgi Targamadze, leader of the Christian […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili claims that the Netherlands wants to copy Georgia’s health care system. He said this during his annual speech to parliament on February 28. Speaking about the system implemented in Georgia, he said new hospitals […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – EU foreign ministers have issued a paper setting out to integrate Georgia more in the Union. The paper is a broad review of relations between Georgia and the EU and the country’s security. It notes that there has been progress in the Eastern […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – EU says parliamentary and presidential elections in Georgia should meet internationally recognized standards of democracy. A statement published on the EU’s Council on the South Caucasus webpage says the EU acknowledges Georgia’s European […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – An opposition politician in the former Soviet republic of Georgia accuses the government of lying about when three servicemen died last week. Salome Zourabichvili, Georgia’s former Foreign Minister, accuses the government of having postponed the sad […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The European Union’s commissioner for trade issues, Karel de Gucht, will arrive in Georgia today on February 28 and will start negotiations with Georgia about a deep and comprehensive free trade agreement. Moldova is also offered the same kind of […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – When Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili comes to parliament this evening to make his speech about the state of the nation, groups and opposition parties will be demonstrating outside. The press office of the Free Georgia Party announced the […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgia’s billionaire-backed opposition movement, Georgian Dream, is not going to reconsider the country’s participation in the ISAF operation in Afghanistan. Press spokesperson Maya Pandzhikidze said this at a regular briefing on February 27. […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The Black Sea port of Batumi has been chosen as host for the OSCE Economic Forum in May, Georgia’s Vice Speaker of Parliament Gigi Tsereteli told journalists Monday. Tsereteli says the decision was taken a few days ago after a meeting of […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgian authorities have issued fines to an opposition figurehead and his associates totaling 363 000 US dollars. The businessman Bidzina Ivanishvili, who since October 2011 has been gradually building a base within the country’s politics, was […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The Georgian president will make his annual speech to parliament tomorrow, February 28, at 20:00. Speaker of Parliament Davit Bakradze announced this today at a bureau session. “The best air time was picked for the president’s visit and speech […]
What is most valuable to the U.S. in regards to Georgia is to have a leader who is supportive of the U.S., but also has democratic legitimacy. And there are plenty of politicians who could fulfill that precondition, according to Lincoln Mitchell, Associate at Columbia […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgia today presented its new combat vehicle Lazika at the Vaziani military base not far from the capital Tbilisi. The demonstration of the new vehicle’s technical and tactical abilities was attended by the Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili. […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Friday evening, Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili’s Facebook page suffered a similar attack as his Russian counterpart Dimitry Medvedev. Tens of comments per minute were submitted in Russian, until the administrator intervened and blocked […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Only one of Abkhazian de facto president Alexander Ankvab’s guards died after Wednesday’s assassination attempt. In the immedate aftermath of the shootout, a spokesman for Ankvab was quoted by Russian news agency Itar-Tass saying that a second […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgia’s largest trading partner is Turkey, just like before, according to fresh data of from January 2012. According to Georgia’s Statistics Department, the turnover with Turkey last year totaled 90 million US dollars. Azerbaijan and Germany […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The former Soviet republic of Georgia is to establish a new data-sharing and information protection model. A new law sets out the rules that will apply to both private and public bodies, the only requirement being that it is a ‘subject of critical […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – As one month is left until the de facto republic South Ossetia is to hold another presidential election, 21 candidates have registered their initiative group with the Central Election Commission. But the most popular candidate in a cancelled election […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – An online campaign against Russian president Dimitry Medvedev’s Facebook page led to comments in Georgian language being blocked by the administrator. The campaigners wanted to express their protest against Russian policy regarding […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Russia hopes to restore friendly relations with the Georgian people, Russia’s Prime Minister Vladimir Putin says. “We have never equaled the Georgian government to the Georgian people. And I hope very much that this really brotherly people to us […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – A Georgian security analyst says today’s attack on Abkhazia’s leader could have been carried out by Moscow-loyal forces who are angered by Alexander Ankvab’s efforts to disrupt them. Mamuka Areshidze, chair of Caucasus Center for Strategic Research […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – A lawmaker from Georgia’s ruling party says he doesn’t exclude that Russia was behind today’s ambush of Abkhazian leader Alexander Anhvab’s convoy. “The fact itself that there were several attacks on this person, while he was the so-called Prime […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Russian security police FSB forced a civilian airliner to return to Moscow and confiscated the passport of a South Ossetian ex-politician. Dzambolat Tedeev, who pondered running for president in South Ossetia last fall, was sitting on an airplane […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – This morning’s roadside ambush has left one of de facto Abkhazian president Alexander Ankvab’s bodyguards dead, and authorities are now using helicopters to hunt down the attackers. The attack happened at 08:25 in the morning Moscow time. News […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Three Georgian soldiers have died in Afghanistan, according to Georgia’s Defense Minister. The country has now lost a total of fifteen soldiers in the ISAF (International Security Assistance Force) mission. “The military servicemen died while they were […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Wednesday morning the de facto president of Georgia’s breakaway region Abkhazia was attacked while in his car on his way to work in Sukhumi. Alexander Ankvab himself was not hurt, Abkhazian and Russian media report, but one of his bodyguards […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The former member of parliament accused of planning a coup d’état in 2007 was released on bail. Georgian authorities accuse Valeri Gelbakhiani of having hatched the plot together with Badri Patarkatsishvili, a now deceased billionaire who owned […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – As a new chapter unfolded in the saga about Georgia’s party finance reform, the Chamber of Control Monday made a request which seemed an implicit criticism of its critics. The CoC was given retroactive powers in a reform last December, but since such […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgian Speaker of Parliament Davit Bakradze is asking parliament to change the recently introduced party finance rules so that they guarantee the freedom of speech more. He said this during a bureau session on February 20, responding to a petition […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili promised to this week unveil a new combat vehicle his country has developed called ‘Lazika’. The president said this in a speech February 20 during a surprise visit to his country’s soldiers stationed in […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili said during a visit to Afghanistan that the United States will help Georgia to defend its territory. The president was addressing Georgian soldiers in the ISAF mission at a military base in Helmand province. […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The United Kingdom’s ambassador to Georgia, Judith Gough, Monday visisted Abkhazia, one of two breakaway regions. Ambassador Gough was travelling together with Regional Adviser Claire Delassard and Political Affairs Counsellor James Gallagher. […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili will hold his annual state of the nation address in parliament’s next week. The exact date of his speech is not yet known. Georgian Speaker of Parliament Davit Bakradze said this at a parliamentary bureau session Monday. […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili today visited his country’s soldiers at the combat outpost Shukvani in Afghanistan’s Helmand province. No information was released beforehand about the president’s visit to Afghanistan, and it only became […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The change of U.S. Ambassador to Georgia is routine, says the embassy’s press service. ‘Ambassadors are replaced once in three years. John Bass has been Ambassador to Georgia since October 2009. Consequently, three years will pass in autumn 2012. He may […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – A former parliamentarian has been arrested in Georgia today just as he entered the country from Armenia. Valeri Gelbakhiani had just crossed the border as law-enforcers arrested him. He voluntarily surrendered and was transferred […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Hunters saved from freezing to death, sailors are saved from pirates, a monk saved from hostage-takers, villagers saved from water and power shortage. Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili gives you the heroes of daily life. As DF Watch continues […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Barack Obama has proposed Richard Boyce Norland as new U.S. ambassador to Georgia. The President proposed Norland as replacement for current ambassador John R. Bass, whose term expires this autumn. He was appointed in October 2009. The Senate’s Foreign […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Just days before the premiere, two cinemas in Azerbaijan have decided not to show a new Russian movie set during the 2008 Russia-Georgia war. Much of the new movie “August. Eight” was shot in Abkhazia and South Ossetia and the backdrop to the story […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The former Soviet republic of Georgia is going to construct a new coal power station in the near future. This was announced Thursday by the director of Georgian Industrial Group, Nana Turnava. She said the group has signed a contract with the Turkish […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgia’s Revenue Service says it can not understand the charges made by a billionaire opposition politician that his TV van was damaged in customs. The revenue service said in a statement Thursday that Bidzina Ivanishvili’s claim that TV equipment he was […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgia’s defense ministry says the current twelve month service length is not enough to properly prepare persons called up for compulsory military service. It is now asking parliament to increase the length of service to 15 months. The bill is certain […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – A billionaire in Georgia who is building an opposition movement says his TV equipment was deliberately damaged while in customs. Bidzina Ivanishvili’s press office said Tuesday that a production van belonging to his TV company with broadcasting […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgia’s foreign ministry says Russia keeps on militarizing Georgia’s occupied regions, is deploying the newest offensive weapons and continues building military infrastructure. The Georgian Foreign Ministry said in a statement Wednesday that Russia […]
TBILISI, DFWatch - The South Ossetian opposition leader who was injured in an attack by authorities last week says she will decide in three days whether to stay in politics or quit, and that she might ask for political asylum elsewhere. “It’s the first time I got the idea about getting out of South Ossetia. I [...]
TBILISI, DFWatch – A suspected explosive device was reported to have been found outside Russia’s consulate in Tbilisi Wednesday. However, it turned out to be just an empty suitcase, according to Interior Ministry spokesperson Shotia Utiashvili. The suspicious object […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Israel’s transport minister proposes to establish visa-free travel with the former Soviet republic of Georgia. The proposal was put forth during a visit to Israel February 13 by Georgia’s minister of economic development Vera Kobalia and is reported on […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The de facto authorities in South Ossetia said she suffered a heart attack and had to be sent away to Russia for treatment. But now opposition leader Alla Dzhioyeva denies she had a heart attack at all. She says her injuries were caused by physical and […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgia is giving the highest priority to investigating Monday’s foiled bombing attempt against the car of an employee at the Israeli embassy. President Mikheil Saakashvili’s press spokesperson Manana Manjgaladze said this today at a regular briefing. […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – A United Nations envoy says the new party finance rules Georgia introduced in December are a violation of human rights. Special Rapporteur Maina Kiai says that ‘they at times use ambiguous language, are fuelling an overall climate of distrust, and […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – A terror suspect was arrested in Zugdidi Tuesday, but Georgian authorities deny that it is linked with yesterday’s bomb attacks against Israeli embassies in Georgia and India. The Georgian Interior Ministry Tuesday arrested a person suspected of planning […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – An explosive device was found under the car of a driver for the Israeli embassy in Tbilisi early Monday morning. The same day, a bomb went off in the Indian capital New Dehli, injuring two people; a driver for the Israeli embassy and a diplomat’s wife. […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – In the former Soviet republic of Georgia, the elected assembly’s minority block is in danger of breaking up. So the ruling party is helping them out. One more member of parliament (MP) from the ruling party has left the party. Mikheil Machavariani, first […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Most newspapers in the former Soviet republic of Georgia today publish a petition which protests controversial changes to a law about party financing. When the law on Political Associations of Citizens was changed in December 2011, it caused a strong […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Today at 17:00 the Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili will meet representatives of the parliamentary majority at his residence in Tbilisi’s Avlabari district. Items on the agenda will be Georgia’s domestic and foreign policy. Majority representatives […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – In the former Soviet republic of Georgia, the bigger parties are giving away representatives in an apparent effort to prevent the moderate opposition from becoming too small. The radical faction Unity for Justice seems to be building up steam, as Roman […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The acting president of the Georgia’s breakaway region South Ossetia claims the situation in the region is within the frames of the law. An opposition leader who was detained Thursday evening is still in hospital after suffering a stroke. “Alla Dzhioyeva […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The Georgian monk who mysteriously disappeared in Abkhazia is free after 25 days of captivity and has returned home. The monk Iona, or Mamuka Maisuradze, was detained in Georgia’s breakaway region Abkhazia nearly three weeks ago. Shota Utiashvili, head of […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – South Ossetian opposition leader Alla Dzhioyeva has regained consciousness in a hospital in Tskhinvali. Doctors want to transport her out of the breakaway republic and to Russia, but she refuses to be moved. It was just one day before she was going to hold […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The Coalition for Media Advocacy says it is unacceptable to prevent journalists from bringing cameras into the session hall of the the Georgian parliament. It recently became known that there will be a photo ban in the new Georgian parliament building in […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The wife of opposition financier Bidzina Ivanishvili is suing Mikheil Saakashvili, the president of Georgia, after he wrongfully revoked her citizenship. Saakashvili revoked Ekaterine Khvedelidze’s Georgian citizenship last October, at a time when […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The leader of the Georgian breakaway republic Abkhazia asks the EU not to teach Abkhazians how to live. “You can get blind from brilliant ideas of the international diplomacy, but they are not for Abkhazia. Our request is don’t teach us how to live. […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The popular opposition leader in South Ossetia, Alla Dzhioyeva, has been detained, reports Ekho Kavkaza. The internet portal writes that unidentified officials entered the politician’s headquarters and detained Dzioyeva, who refused to go with […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Abkhazia wants the EU to recognize the Georgian breakaway region’s own passports as valid travel documents, just as is the case with North Cyprus. De facto foreign minister Viacheslav Chirikba said this February 8 after meeting Philip Dimitrov, […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgian billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili calls for the government to investigate a police special operation in 2006 which took the lives of two young men. It’s known as the Vazagashvili case and gathers a crowd every year at the spot near Paliashvili […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgia recorded a record number of visitors entering the country in January 2012. According to data from the Border Guard Department and the National Administration of Tourism, 227 006 international travelers entered the country in January, which is 41% […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Snowy weather is creating difficulties in the former Soviet republic of Georgia. The whole country is currently covered with up to two meters of snow, but the transit of goods east-west is flowing normally. The international airport in Tbilisi says their […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The situation in Georgia’s breakaway region South Ossetia ahead of a rescheduled elections is getting more strained day by day. The region’s state security committee released a statement Wednesday warning of ‘possible provocations by Georgian special […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Russian President Dimitry Medvedev says the Russian and Georgian people should have relations and thinks it’s therefore necessary to restore trade relation. The president made this statement on Monday during a meeting with his supporters. “We have […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – There is growing uncertainty about whether the Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili may stay on as prime minister after the end of his second term as president. Yesterday, the editorial board of the Washington Post published a comment in which […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The situation in Georgia’s breakaway region South Ossetia is getting more complicated as both top candidates refuse to take part in a rescheduled election on March 25. Kremlin favorite Anatoly Bibilov says he refrains from taking part […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – A shot was fired at a journalist’s house in the Georgian capital Monday. No-one was injured. The journalist Khatuna Paichadze was at work when the shot rang out at around 14:00 local time. The bullet broke a window in her first floor flat in an Italian yard […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has been in contact with the foreign minister of Georgia to discuss security issues. It’s the country’s deputy foreign minister Nikoloz Vashakidze who brings this information at a regular briefing on Monday. […]
TBLISI, DFWatch – The Georgian Speaker of Parliament says that there is no talk of Georgia having a role in a potential conflict between Iran and the USA. Davit Bakradze was commenting a statement made earlier by the deputy secretary of the country’s security council, Batu Kutelia, […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The Georgian president says Russia stopped its attack in August 2008 after the United States started deploying forces to assist the small country. Mikheil Saakashvili was speaking to students at the U.S. Naval Academy February 3, a speech that was carried […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – A South Ossetian opposition leader calls for the other candidates to not take part in a rescheduled election March 25, calling it illegal, and instead recognize her as the legitimate head of government. Several candidates have registered with the Central […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The Georgian president says Georgia already is the biggest trade hub in the Caucasus region and that the construction of Europe’s biggest shopping center is just completed here. He made this statement during his speech at Georgetown University in Washington. […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The Georgian Defense Minister signals that his country will strengthen its military capability. Bacho Akhalaia made the statement on February 2 after the meeting his U.S. counterpart Leon Panetta at a meeting of defense ministers among NATO […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – “The military cooperation between Georgia and USA is entering a completely new stage, which means that Georgia will better protect itself,” Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili says. The president said this Thursday during his visit to the U.S. after meeting with […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – Georgian president says the Georgian government has delivered on its promises. He said this during a speech at Georgetown University as part of his official visit to the U.S. this week. “Our economy has quadrupled. Crime has decreased fivefold. The poverty level has fallen […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – During a speech at Georgetown University in Washington, Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili said that his first presidential salary was 40 dollars and the state treasury was completely empty when he came to government in what is called the […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The de facto head of the Abkhazian church Besarion Aplia confirms that a Georgian cleric was arrested in Abkhazia a few days ago. Aplia says the Georgian cleric didn’t have his documents in order. Georgia discussed this issue on Tuesday during a regular […]
TBILISI, DFWatch – The Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili says the changes his country has been through can not be undone by himself nor anyone else. He was speaking at the US Institute of Peace on invitation from the Atlantic Council, a Washington-based […]
TBILISI, DFWatch - Snowfall and strong winds are making trouble for people all over Georgia. More than 72 000 were without electricity Thursday morning. The biggest distributor, Energo-Pro, said they had brought down the number of customers without power from 64 000 to around 49 000 by early afternoon. Motorists are heavily affected. Sections [...]
TBILISI, DFWatch - A civil rights group in Georgia wants a new set of rules to ensure that the country's media watchdog becomes more independent. Georgian Young Lawyer's Association (GYLA) last year criticized the present chair of the communications regulatory commission, Irakli Chikovani, for having a conflict of interest. In a study GYLA found [...]
TBILISI, DFWatch - We asked Caucasus expert Tom de Waal a few questions following Monday's meeting between U.S. president Barack Obama and Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili in Washington. de Waal is a journalist and writer, previously Caucasus editor of Institute for War and Peace Reporting, and now senior associate at the Carnegie Endowment for [...]
TBILISI, DFWatch - The Georgian president says the results of his meeting with U.S. president Barack Obama exceeded his expectations. President Mikheil Saakashvili said the issues he discussed with Obama at the White House Monday represent “a new and higher level of cooperation between the two countries; on the one hand military security and on the [...]
TBILISI, DFWatch - The leadership of Georgia's breakaway region South Ossetia say an opposition politician's quest to claim election victory threatens a fragile peace and may have serious consequences. Authorities released the statement after talks with opposition leader Alla Dzhioyeva, who has been campaigning on and off to claim victory after an election in November which [...]
TBILISI, DFWatch - According to the Georgian president’s administration, Iran was not on the agenda of Monday's meeting between U.S. president Barack Obama and president Mikheil Saakashvili of Georgia. Before the meeting many had been speculating that the two would be discussing the increased tension between Iran and the U.S., especially in light of how close [...]
TBILISI, DFWatch - Political Tbilisi is grabbing on to a phrase used by U.S. President Barack Obama yesterday after meeting the Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili about having a transfer of power after this falls parliamentary election in Georgia. “I want to express my appreciation for the work that’s been done in the past, but [...]
TBILISI, DFWatch - U.S. President Barack Obama said after hosting the Georgian leader Mikheil Saakashvili in the Oval Office Monday that the United States will explore various trading options, including the possibility of a free trade agreement. The president made it clear that there still is a lot of work to be done and that a [...]
TBILISI, DFWatch - South Ossetian opposition leader Alla Dzhioyeva wants to have her inauguration on February 10. The location for the ceremony has not been announced. “I appeal to the acting president of South Ossetia requesting that the transfer of power is done in a civilized way, as fits a legally elected president,” Russian [...]
TBILISI, DFWatch - The Georgian Speaker of Parliament Davit Bakradze hopes that Switzerland will be able to fully monitor the flow of goods across the border between Georgia and Russia. Bakradze said this at a meeting with the delegation of the Swiss Foreign Affairs Department. Russia occupied parts of Georgia's territories after the war [...]
TBILISI, DFWatch - Villagers in Upper Svaneti are waiting for a report which is supposed to guarantee their forced resettlement follows a democratic process. But the country's energy minister said in December that no matter what the results are of the environmental and social impact assessment, the Khudoni hydropower project will be built. Khudoni, [...]
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, [...]
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 [...]
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, [...]
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 [...]
