During a speech at a panel discussion durig the Qatar Economic Forum, Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili said that 20% of the territory of Ukraine is already occupied by Russia and “no one knows when” this war will end. According to him, everyone is surprised that Ukraine has held out “for so long.” The Prime Minister also touched upon the resumption of air traffic between Russia and Georgia, saying that this is a “normal” story.
What else did Garibashvili say in Qatar?
● We had a war in 2008, you remember that well, but do you remember anyone who imposed sanctions against Russia? No one in the world had a correct, adequate reaction. So my question is: where is the logic? Our war was not a war, but the war in Ukraine is a war?
● We were very disappointed that after our 2008 war with Russia, global business was running its course. After that devastating war, 20% of our territories are still occupied, Russia built two military bases on our historical land, Russia recognized the so-called independence of our historical regions, and this occupation continues to this day.
● I would like to ask you what else Georgia can do to support Ukraine and the Ukrainian people. Ukrainian friends may have other expectations. They have publicly stated that they want to see a second front in Georgia.
● My question to European and American friends is this: my dear friends, you continued to do business with Russia, you did not impose sanctions, the EU paid Russia $2.3 trillion until 2022, no one stopped doing business with Russia. In this situation, I want to reaffirm that we support Ukraine and the Ukrainian people, we want this war to end as soon as possible.
● We have joined more than 500 resolutions, fully comply with international sanctions, the State Department said that the financial institutions of Georgia and the National Bank fully comply with financial sanctions, and as for economic sanctions, I would like to clarify that Georgia’s trade with Russia is less than $1 billion. The EU trades in four days for the amount we make in a whole year. It’s funny.
● One million ethnic Georgians live in Russia as a diaspora and I think direct flights to Russia are a common story. This does not mean that we are conducting some kind of political consultations with Russia. As I said, this is part of our economic and trade relations, just like the EU and the US have with Russia.
● We have very good relationship with China. There is a free trade agreement, we are expanding trade and economic relations with China. Do you know what China is doing? I think China has a very smart approach during this crisis – it is trying to mediate between Ukraine and Russia. I welcome any effort by any country to push countries towards peace and negotiations. In general, I am a peaceful person, I believe in stability and negotiations.
On May 23, Transparency International-Georgia published a study on the manipulation of Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili’s statements to justify restoring direct flights to Russia.
According to the organization, the prime minister responded to protests against the resumption of flights with anti-Western rhetoric and manipulative statements. According to TI, the main pathos of Garibashvili’s statement was that while the EU itself trades with Russia, it is unfair to call on Georgia to stop economic relations with it.
“The truth looks like this: after the start of the war in Ukraine, the EU’s trade dependence on Russia decreased three times, while Georgia’s trade dependence on Russia increased one and a half times.
Emphasizing that the EU has a much larger trade with Russia than Georgia is manipulation, because the EU economy is up to 20 trillion dollars, and even a small share of trade in it turns out to be a high figure, ”the study says.
On May 12, Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili stated that Russia’s abolition of the visa regime for Georgian citizens is a positive fact. According to him, “friends should be kind” (meaning the West – Ed.) and understand that trade with Russia is in the interests of Georgia.
