Suchergebnisse

Ponders the future of Georgian President Mikheil Saaskashvili in the wake of the August 2008 Georgian-Russian war. At issue is the survival of democracy given Saaskashvili's vulnerability & Russian interest in his removal. Reasons why Saaskashvili might not last as Georgia's president are presented before considering the prospect that he might refuse to relinquish power voluntarily. Attention is then given to why he is likely to survive this crisis, eg, broad power base across ethnic minority & low-income communities & the unlikelihood of a military coup or anything similar to the Rose Revolution. In this light, it is contended that Georgia's democratic institutions will persist & that Saaskashvili's government will be reinvigorated. D. Edelman

By ordering the military takeover of the secessionist region of South Ossetia on August 7, did the Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili fall into a trap set by the Kremlin? Was he too confident in the United States, expecting more concrete support? Did he believe that it would help his country along the road to integration in Europe or NATO? Whatever the case, the result of this operation is disastrous for Georgia. Its army was swiftly defeated by Russia; many civil infrastructures were destroyed: & South Ossetia, together with the other secessionist region Abkhazia, seem definitively lost. This episode demonstrates the real power balance in the Caucasus, where Russia reigns supreme. Will Georgia once again find itself under Moscow's control? It's not totally impossible. Adapted from the source document.

Discusses resignation of President Shevardnadze following "revolution of the roses" in Nov. 2003, political prospects of opposition party leader and reformer Mikhail Saakashvili, and US assistance to the new government.

Interview with President Mikhail Saakashvili on Georgia's economic difficulties since its independence in 1991, the country's unity threatened by secessionist regions of Abkhazia and Southern Ossetia, and geopolitical implications of its strategic location at the crossroads of the Russian, Turkish, and Iranian worlds and on the route of oil pipes running from the Caspian Sea. Summaries in English and Spanish p. 471 and 485.

Following the war between Georgia and Russia in the summer of 2008, Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvili seemed to be in a very delicate situation. Moscow officially proclaimed the Georgian head of state a "political corpse" and refused to hold any discussions with him. His Western allies kept their distance. The two separatist regions of Georgia, South Ossetia and Abkhazia, had officially declared their independence. And to top it off, domestic protests were on the rise. Despite all that, two years later Mr. Saakashvili is still the President of Georgia. What's his secret? In this exclusive interview with Politique Internationale, he explains his strategy and defends his past and future policies with his usual fire. According to Saakashvili, his country was the victim of outrageous aggression by its neighbor Russia, and has right on its side. Despite the bellicose attitude of Moscow, Tbilisi is still in favor of discussions to settle their many bilateral issues. And the country is more than ever committed to its heavily Euro-Atlantic flavored policy. Adapted from the source document.

This article analyzes the difficulties encountered in reaching democracy in Georgia. President Mikheil Saakashvili has been successful in eliminating low-level official corruption & has built a strong state for his people. Even though, Georgian society & Georgians' personal lives are free from state interference, Saakashvili believes that no potential political power can be allowed to remain independent. The actions of the Georgia government have a semblance to the old Soviet leadership & the problems blocking democracy are: 1) the use of power in order to gain wealth; 2) the absence of the rule of law; & 3) the passivity of citizens. Adapted from the source document.

In this exclusive interview with Isabelle Lasserre, the President of Georgia frankly admits he is worried about the return of Vladimir Putin to the Kremlin. Mikheil Saakashvili expects Russia to once again take an aggressive stance against its neighbors in the Caucasus. And its conspicuous support for the secessionist republics of Abkhazia and South Ossetia does not augur well either. Nor does his announced plan to carry out major Russian military maneuvers at the same time as legislative elections in Georgia, slated for October. Putin could well take advantage of these concurrent events to stir up trouble and then use this as a pretext for a military intervention. According to President Saakashvili, Russia wants to recover Georgia at all costs. If the elections go smoothly, they will mark a point of no return on the road towards democracy and Georgia's integration in Europe. But the Russian administration is very aware of this fact and will do all it can to throw a monkey wrench in the works! Adapted from the source document.

He has supposedly been discredited by Georgia's military defeat against Russia in the summer of 2008, weakened by the loss of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, shaken by the opposition's fierce criticism, ready to resign -- Russian president Dmitri Medvedev even called him a "political corpse." and yet, Mikheil Saakashvili is still alive and kicking, and has no intention of backing down. In this exclusive interview, the Georgian president insists with his usual fighting spirit that his country will eventually recover the territories lost in last summer's war. He denounces the maneuvering of an opposition he describes as an ill-assorted group of people nostalgic for the former regime, and proudly asserts that under his rule his small country has in just a few years evolved into a modern society with a promising economy in which the international business community would do well to invest. What is clear is that Mikheil Saakashvili has lost none of his energy and determination. Adapted from the source document.

Georgia initialed in November 2013, the summit of the eastern partnership in Vilnius an Association Agreement with the EU. It underlined that the South Caucasus republic remains strongly oriented to the west after Saakashvili. At the same time, the Alliance seeks Georgian Dream, since 2012 in power, a restructuring of relations with Russia. This could have an impact on the EU. Adapted from the source document.