New Georgian Defense Minister Levan Izoria received this post, first of all, being a man with a great academic background and a lot of experience in reform activity, the experts Vakhtang Maisaya and Ramaz Sakvarelidze told Vestnik Kavkaza.
A member of the ‘Expert Club of Georgia’ Vakhtang Maisaya said that Izoria is a qualified lawyer, albeit he is political 'rookie'. "He actually came to power with the ruling Georgian Dream party," he explained.
"The new minister is a very educated man, he was the rector of the Academy of the Ministry of the Interior. None of the previous defense ministers had an academic education and skills in this area," the expert lamented.
However, Maisaya believes that Izoria will not occupy this new position for a long time. "He is a more or less acceptable person for this position, but at the same time still a temporary person. He will just bring the process to the upcoming parliamentary elections, to ensure that the Ministry of Defence and the armed forces develop in a more or less smooth direction. And after the parliamentary elections this post will be occupied by a more qualified candidate," a member of the ‘Expert Club of Georgia’ expressed an opinion.
Accordingly, any global changes by Izoria could hardly be expected. "He will support a political stability to avoid such excesses as in Turkey, for example," Vakhtang Maisaya noted.
Georgian political analyst Ramaz Sakvarelidze recalled that it was Levan Izoria who suggested the draft reform of Georgia's police, which has been very successful. "I mean the growing role of the patrol police. That is, the new defense minister is a reformer. He is a theorist and as a lawyer, he is more concerned with theoretical issues," the expert noted.
According to the expert, Izoria's works are devoted to the Georgian-European relations and focused on rapprochement with Europe. "Izoria received his education in the West. In general, the activity of the new head of the Defense Ministry describes him as a man of the Western orientation," he drew attention.
"Thus, a key role Kvirikashvili's derision was played by the fact that, in the first place, the new minister is a reformer, especially in the power structures, and secondly, his geopolitical orientation, which is important for such a position," the expert concluded.
The expert predicts that Izoria will remain the head of the defense department for a log time. "A lot depends on whether the Georgian Dream party will keep the leading status, or it will form a coalition government. Even in the case of a coalition, apparently, the Georgian Dream will try to retain the post of the Defense minister. Therefore, I think that Izoria was appointed for a long time," Ramaz Sakvarelidze added.
