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Anahit Shirinyan

Georgia: An Unpredictable Neighbor for Armenia

Armenian-Georgian contradictions have become more clearly defined of late. These became evident after the Russian-Georgian war and the Armenian-Turkish normalization process that came afterwards. However, it would seem that the recent Armenian-Turkish protocols are tending to sharpen the existing problems. There are many opportunities for this to happen.

The diplomatic scandal of recent weeks has been the Armenian-Georgian border problems. On August 26, reports appeared in the press that Georgian border guards had entered Armenian territory and prohibited Armenian villagers from corking their lands. Later on, an incident occurred along the Georgian-Turkish border during which three Georgian border guards died. The Georgian press reported it as an incident that occurred on the Armenian-Georgian border. Even though the report was later officially refuted by Tbilisi, it merely served to sharpen tensions within the Armenian and Georgian public spheres. At the same time, RoA President Serzh Sargsyan met with the central staff on the RoA Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the diplomatic corps and spoke about the progress being made by Armenia regarding the Javakhk issue. “We must take serious steps to offer all possible assistance to the Armenians of Georgia. In terms of Javakhk, the logic of our adopted policy must stem from the principle “integration without assimilation”…I believe that the adoption of Armenian as a regional language in Georgia, the registration of the Armenian Apostolic Church and steps taken to protect Armenian cultural monuments in Georgia can only assist in the strengthening of Armenian-Georgian friendship and mutual confidence,” declared President Sargsyan. This declaration was perhaps a unique “message” to the Georgian authorities and not randomly issued during a period when Armenian-Georgian relations are undergoing review. By the declaration, the Georgian authorities are indirectly being blamed for conducting a policy of assimilation and trampling Armenian identity and cultural rights underfoot. At first glance this would seem a natural, if not unprecedented step, if we take into account that the policy of Armenia vis-a-vis Georgia regarding these issues can be described as “laissez-faire”. It is true that President Sargsyan’s declaration got a mixed reaction in Tbilisi. While Georgian Foreign Minister Grigol Vashadze, who had arrived in Yerevan, promised to take a look at the question of making Armenian a regional language in Georgia, within Georgian social and political circles his declaration tended to be seen as a blow from behind. During an interview with the Russian paper “Nezavisimaya Gazetta”, an anonymous top Georgian government official linked this declaration to movement in Armenian-Turkish relations. “…So, it turns out that Armenian authorities haven’t been sincere with us during these past years just because Armenia’s only link to the outside world goes through Georgia? Isn’t it premature? The border with Turkey isn’t open yet; all the talking is about intentions,” he stated. During an interview with the same paper, Georgian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Reintegration Affairs Temuri Yakobashvili, referring to the issue of granting Armenian the status of a regional language, declared, “We are very happy that Armenian is the only official language in Armenia.” Shalva Natelashvili, head of Georgia’s Labor Party, during an interview given to the Azerbaijani 1news.az newspaper, suggested that such language demands rather be made in Buenos Aires, Australia and California, where large numbers of Armenians reside. Natelashvili stated, “Sadly, these are tough times for Georgia and I would advise the Armenian authorities to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the brotherly Georgian people and not to come out in confrontation.” Meanwhile, during the 63rd session of the United Nations General Assembly on September 9, the Armenian delegation voted against a Georgian resolution calling for the return of Georgian refugees to Abkhazia and South Ossetia. As a rule, Georgia has always voted in favor of all resolutions put forth by Azerbaijan in the United Nations regarding Nagorno-Karabakh and thus, against the interests of Armenia. Naturally, the process of Armenian-Turkish reconciliation raises grave concerns in Tbilisi. For the most part, the process is not conducive for Georgia which can see its importance for the West diminish as well as for Armenia and at the same time becoming more vulnerable when it comes to its relations with Moscow. Given such conditions, Georgia is becoming quite unpredictable for all its neighbors. This is borne out by the latest scandal with Turkey and Azerbaijan. On August 16, a Georgian navy patrol seized the Turkish tanker “Buket” transporting 2,700 tons of fuel to Abkhazia. The Georgians arrested the ship’s crew; citizens of Turkey and Azerbaijan. The incident soon took on political overtones. It was only after the Turkish and Azerbaijani foreign ministries dispatched letters of protest to Tbilisi that the tanker’s crew was released. The ship’s captain however, of Turkish nationality, was tried and sentenced to 24 years imprisonment. It took the personal mediation of Turkey’s Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, during his recent visit to Tbilisi, to win the captain’s release. While perhaps true that the normalization process of Armenian-Turkish relations affords Armenia the luxury of being much more stern and dogged in its relations with Georgia, but this will not make up for the evident lack of Armenian policy definition regarding its northern neighbor. This policy must be clear-cut and on-going. Today, more than ever, Yerevan and Tbilisi are in a state of mutual dependency. Tbilisi takes advantage of its geographical significance and strategic position but it must not forget that any pressure exerted by Yerevan makes its more vulnerable in its relations with Moscow. This becomes all the more apparent when we take into account the fact that Georgia is receiving any concrete assistance from its ally the West. Given these conditions, Armenia is afforded the opportunity to clarify its demands of Georgia. At the same time, Armenia can do away with the atmosphere of mutual mistrust that has historically arisen in relations between the two countries. Otherwise, Tbilisi and Yerevan will soon be forced to sit at the “reconciliation table” with third-party nations as mediators. As an example, on September 3, the issue of Armenian-Georgian relations was discussed during a meeting of Georgian Deputy Foreign Minister Aleksandre Nalbandov and Marie Yovanovitch, U.S. Ambassador to Armenia.

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