"The door to the 3+3 format remains open for Georgia" - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov

Lavrov on the 3+3 format for Georgia

Official Tbilisi is still considering the possibility of joining the 3+3 format, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said after a meeting with Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan., but the West remains a deterrent to joining.

“Georgia is still thinking about participation in this format. The first meeting has taken place, the door for Tbilisi is open. Now we are working on holding the second meeting in 3+3. The West is already actively working to undermine this structure, which has just begun to take shape,” Lavrov says.

As the Lavrov explains, the West (the EU and the US) is trying to impose its own conditions on the three countries of the South Caucasus, as it “still claims dominance and the strengthening of its hegemony everywhere.” The West, far from its own borders, is also directly attacking Turkey, Iran and Russia, the neighbors of the South Caucsus countries.

“What is the West guided by when it starts some kind of game in the South Caucasus? Along with these geopolitical plans, the West financially supports various NGOs that are engaged in activities, preparations for a new “color revolution”. All these NGOs are known. They publicly defend the interests of the West and try to discredit the actions of Russia and Iran, which is also known.

Therefore, I do not see the possibility or need to conduct any dialogue with the West on the South Caucasus, nor on most other issues on the international regional agenda,” Lavrov said.

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The idea of the 3+3 format was put forward by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan after the second Karabakh war in 2020.

The format involves the creation of a platform of six nations, in which the governments of Turkey, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia, Russia and Iran should take part in order, as Erdogan says, to establish peace in the region.

Georgia initially refused to participate in the platform, but Erdogan once again put this initiative forward in June 2021 during a visit to Azerbaijan.

The President of Turkey then stated that the establishment of peace in the Caucasus region is possible through regional cooperation and this would be beneficial to the whole world.

“Not only Azerbaijan, but all countries in the region, including Armenia, as well as the whole world will benefit from peace and tranquility in the Caucasus,” Erdogan said.

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The first meeting in the 3+3 format was held in Moscow on December 10, 2021, and Georgia did not take part. Despite the absence of a delegation from Georgia, the Georgian flag was raised in the meeting room, which was subsequently critiized by the Georgian Foreign Ministry.

“Georgia has repeatedly stated its clear position regarding the 3+3 regional format. We will not consider Georgia’s participation. At the meeting held in Moscow on December 10, there was a flag of Georgia, which, of course, is unacceptable for us and to which we had to respond through the appropriate diplomatic channels,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.