TBILISI, September 24 – Russia says Georgia must give legally binding guarantees that it will not use force against its breakaway territories Abkhazia and South Ossetia. The statement further demands that Georgia agree to formally mark the borders of those territories. The Russian Foreign Ministry statement was issued following talks on Wednesday between Deputy Foreign … Read more
TBILISI, September 19 – De facto South Ossetia’s acting president Marat Kambolov has claimed victory in Friday’s snap election, with his rivals congratulating him even before the final vote count was announced. Georgia condemned the vote as illegal, saying it could not change the breakaway region’s status as part of Georgian territory. The territory’s Central … Read more
TBILISI, September 16 – Yet another short tenure at the top of Georgia’s powerful State Security Service ended on Wednesday, as parliament approved Tamaz Borashvili as replacement for Gela Geladze, who stepped down two days earlier. Borashvili was backed unanimously by 83 MPs. By law, the State Security Service chief is appointed for six years, … Read more
TBILISI, September 11 – Former Georgian prosecutor general Otar Partskhaladze is facing a wave of criticism in Georgia after declaring the creation of a volunteer military unit to fight on Russia’s side in Ukraine. Partskhaladze, who now uses the name Otar Romanov-Partskhaladze, said the new unit is called Georgievsky, a reference to the 1783 Treaty … Read more
TBILISI, September 9 – Representatives of Georgia and de facto South Ossetia discussed detentions at the dividing line at talks in Ergneti on Tuesday, with little common ground. The meeting of the Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism, or IPRM, was as usual held in the village Ergneti, near Tskhinvali. These are regular field meetings, hosted … Read more
TBILISI, September 8 – Georgia’s former chief prosecutor Otar Romanov-Partskhaladze says he has formed a volunteer unit in Russia that will fight on Moscow’s side in the war against Ukraine. Partskhaladze told Russian state news agency TASS on Monday that he had personally decided to join the war effort and had created an international volunteer … Read more
TBILISI, August 17 – A Georgian company denies having delivered a shipment of gasoline to Russian-backed Abkhazia. Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze confirmed on August 12 that a private Georgian company had sent fuel to Abkhazia, where shortages had emerged. He stressed that no state agency was involved and said the shipment complied with Georgian law, … Read more
TBILISI, August 10 – Georgian prosecutors are questioning veterans and former participants in the 1992-93 war in Abkhazia after claims of mistreatment of prisoners in that war. The probe will look into claims by Giorgi Baramidze (pictured) that prisoners were shot, and is based on suspicion of treason and sabotage. The politician is not charged … Read more
TBILISI, July 27 – A Georgian man was released by de facto South Ossetian authorities on Monday. The 59-year-old was detained the day before near Perevi, in Sachkhere municipality. The breakaway region’s news agency RES reported that he had ‘inadvertently crossed the border near the village of Sinagur in the Dzau District,’ according to a … Read more
TBILISI, May 30 – Georgia’s ruling party has reacted coldly to a European Union idea to include the withdrawal of Russian troops from Georgia’s breakaway regions in future peace talks over Ukraine. According to Rezonansi, the initiative belongs to EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas. The issue was discussed Thursday at an EU ministerial meeting … Read more