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Georgian Foreign Minister, Salome Zourabichvili

Georgian Foreign Minister, Salome Zourabichvili

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About this Event

13 Oct 2005

 'Stability in the Caucasus'

About the Speech:

The Georgian Minister for Foreign Affairs, Salome Zourabichvili, gave a keynote address entitled “Stability in the Caucasus?, at the Institute. 

According to Minister for Foreign Affairs, Zourabichvili,  Georgia is a complex country in a difficult region but one with real potential. Surrounded by interesting  neighbours, Russia, Turkey, Iran, Azerbaijan and Armenia, for Georgia, stabilizing the region is a priority - in particular, the frozen conflicts in Ossetia and Abkazia.  Georgia has three priorities  the EU, integration into NATO and normalisation of relations with Russia.  As Georgia is not on a direct path for EU membership, the Minister argued that the EU should not seek to impose conditions on Georgia. She pointed out that Georgia’s is on track for partnership with NATO, but that this depends on the reform of Georgia’s military.

Finally, she talked of the ambivalent role that Russia plays in Georgia, and stressed the importance of managing relations with Russia, which is a main market and main provider for Georgia.  The EU and the US, she contended, should not fear that Georgia will bring them in to conflict with Russia, rather, they could assist in dialogue. She called on the EU to follow up on the implementation of the strategy devised by the EU rule of law mission, which recently concluded and to assist in financing prison reform and police reform as the US had for military reform. 

Other priorities for the EU would be to promote regional cooperation, assist with border management and transit issues and the free movement of people.  She welcomed the completion of the oil pipeline as a new route between East and West.  One important benefit from EU engagement in major infra-structural projects, she said, would be the establishment of links between the EU and the Black Sea and Central Asia.  She welcomed the support and friendship of new member states such as the Czech Republic, Poland and the prospective member Romania, and hoped that Ireland would use its good offices to move forward the stalled New Neighbourhood Agenda in EU institutional circles.

About the Speaker:

In course of the Georgian presidential election in 2008, Salome Zourabichvili and many other politicians in opposition agreed to the Patriarch of Georgia Ilia II's proposal to abolish the republican system in Georgia in favour of a constitutional monarchy under the House of Bagrationi.

Beside Georgian and French, she speaks English, German, and Italian.

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