Latest news in Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, summary. Live

●  Today, March 3, the parliamentary Committee on Economic Policy will hold a first reading of legislative amendments to the Law on Broadcasting. One key point is that TV and radio companies would be prohibited from receiving any funding or material benefit from any foreign state. Experts say these amendments contradict international freedom of speech standards and aim to eliminate critical content. Read more here

●  Also today, the parliamentary Committee on Legal Affairs will hold a first reading of a draft law on registering foreign agents. The authors claim they have presented a literal translation of the U.S. FARA law. Read more here

●  In Abkhazia, Badra Gunba was elected president in the second round with 54.73% of the vote. His main opponent, opposition leader Adgur Ardzinba, received 41.54%. Reports indicate that 70% of the population took part in the elections—100,412 people. Read more here

●  Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated Badra Gunba on his victory. “I expect that strengthening friendly, allied relations between Russia and Abkhazia will continue to benefit our fraternal peoples,” reads his message.

●  “Ukraine condemns and does not recognize the so-called presidential elections in the region of Abkhazia, occupied by Russia. We will always support Georgia’s territorial integrity and sovereignty within its internationally recognized borders,” the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry stated.

●  Prime Minister from the Georgian Dream party, Irakli Kobakhidze, supported U.S. President Donald Trump, commenting on his unprecedented public dispute with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Kobakhidze wished Trump “fortitude and courage” and labeled all politicians in Georgia and Europe who supported Zelensky as “supporters of war.” “The struggle between the party of war and peace-loving forces is entering a decisive phase,” Kobakhidze wrote on his Facebook page.

●  The fifth president, Salome Zurabishvili, on the other hand, expressed support for Zelensky. “We in Georgia understand what it means to defend our territory, independence, and freedom,” she wrote on X. “We all need a strong America together with an even stronger Europe. It seems we are finally seeing the latter come to the forefront,” Zurabishvili added.

●  Тaxi drivers from Bolt, Maksim, and Yandex held a protest in Tbilisi. They claim Georgians face hiring discrimination, as employers prefer foreigners seen as cheap labor. The protesters have hired a team of lawyers and are preparing a petition to parliament.

●   In the semifinal of the European Rugby Championship, Georgia beat Romania 43:5 and advanced to the final. They also won the Antimoza Iverieli Cup for the 19th time, traditionally contested in matches between the Georgian and Romanian teams. In the final, Georgia will face Spain in Tbilisi.

Photo by David Pipia/JAMnews: A vendor at Tbilisi’s Dry Bridge flea market has assembled a symbolic array of items representing Georgia’s recent history:

●  Assistant to President Hikmet Gadzhiev: “Armenia, at a state level, is directly responsible for the mines it placed in territories previously occupied in Azerbaijan. In the South Caucasus, Armenia remains the largest producer of mines.” Gadzhiev also released statistics showing that since November 2020 (after the second Karabakh war), 383 people have been affected by explosions on territories returned to Azerbaijani control, with 70 fatalities.

●  The Ukrainian Ministry of Defense has refuted claims circulating in Armenian media that Kyiv is trying to spark armed conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia. “Disinformation spreaders assert that a new Azerbaijani-Armenian war would force Russia to open a ‘second front,’ thus dispersing its forces to Ukraine’s benefit. This campaign is based on a fake report containing several glaring errors and not meeting official Ukrainian document standards. It is aimed at discrediting Ukraine and worsening Ukrainian-Armenian and Ukrainian-Azerbaijani relations, which primarily benefits the aggressor state, Russia,” the statement read.

●  “Meetings of European leaders on Ukraine and European security issues will become much more frequent, possibly every two or three weeks,” said Turkish National Intelligence head Hakan Fidan after the European leaders’ meeting on Ukraine in London. Fidan attended on behalf of the Turkish president.

●  By court decision, detained Meydan TV journalist Fatima Movlamli will remain in pretrial detention for one month and 19 days. Her arrest was announced on February 28. Currently, in cases against independent media “Abzas Media,” “Toplum TV,” and “Meydan TV,” more than 25 journalists and editors remain in detention. They are all accused of currency smuggling, though everyone arrested strongly denies this and claims persecution for publishing criticism of the authorities. In mid-February, the “Union for the Freedom of Political Prisoners of Azerbaijan” released an updated list of political prisoners containing 357 names. Read more here

●  Work on the Igdir (Turkey)–Nakhchivan (Azerbaijan) gas pipeline is in its final stage and will be commissioned this week, according to Turkish Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar. He added that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will attend the opening ceremony. The pipeline, which is 97.5 kilometers long (with 17.5 km in Azerbaijan), is expected to fully meet the gas needs of the Nakhchivan autonomous region.

Photo JAMnews: Azerbaijani carpets:

●  Karen Shaboyan, a member of the Armenian Football Federation’s executive committee, resigned after the harsh detention of football fans during a match (see video below). The fans had accused federation head Armen Melikbekyan of the national team’s failures and demanded his resignation. Shaboyan condemned the actions of law enforcement against nine loyal Armenian football supporters. “In 18 years, I’ve never seen such treatment of fans, who now face criminal charges,” he said.

●  A protest in support of former Nagorno-Karabakh Prime Minister Ruben Vardanyan and other ethnic Armenians imprisoned in Azerbaijan took place near the famous “Wings of Tatev” cable car in Syunik. Locals from Tatev, Goris, and Tegh opposed the trials in Azerbaijan and spoke out against the “inhumane treatment of compatriots,” said Tatev deputy mayor Marat Gerasmyan.

●   Former minister of the unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic Mane Tandilyan has begun a hunger strike, urging Ruben Vardanyan to end his own hunger strike in a Baku prison. “Each day leaves irreversible damage to his health and poses a serious threat to his life,” she said.

●  The film Anora, featuring Armenian actors Karen Karagulyan and Vache Tovmasyan, won Oscars for Best Screenplay and Editing. Director Sean Baker was named Best Director, and Anora actress Mikey Madison won Best Actress.

Top stories in Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Georgia from 24-28 February, 2025