Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili described the events of the Five-Day War of 2008. He said that he had offered Russian President Vladimir Putin to return Abkhazia and South Ossetia to Georgia in exchange for scrapping Georgia’s pro-Western policy, strive for NATO membership, stop using the US Sixth Fleet and to prevent the inevitable war after the Rose Revolution. Saakashvili said that Medvedev had been trying to scare him at the birthday of Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev.
Vladimir Jarikhin, deputy director of the Institute for CIS States , said that even if the offers Saakashvili had made in 2008 were true, that would not solve the problem, because Abkhazia would not accept it anyway. It was more of mockery for Russia, he believes.
Andrey Kazantsev, director of the analytical center of the Institute for International Research of MGIMO, supposed that Saakashvili was trying to save his political figure by giving the interview on the 2008 events. Chances for his victory at the presidential polls were small, so he tried provocative tactics. One of the examples of such behaviour was a TV show where Saakashvili was accusing Russia of aggression and intervention. It only serves to show what kind of a politician he is. His political carrier was always built on conflict, he expert said.
Yevgeny Minchenko, director of the International Institute for Political Expertise, said that inevitability of the war was a complete lie. Russia helped Saakashvili end the autonomy of Adjara in 2003. Saakashvili would never overcome Abashidze without Russia’s support.
Nana Devdariani, head of the Center for Global Research, pointed out that the interview had been given during mourning processes. The expert said that what Saakashvili had said was shameful. She also wondered why Saakashvili mentioned relations with the US and talks with Vice President Cheney. Devdariani assumed that Saakashvili was blackmailing the US and threatening to tell about his affairs with Americans.
Petre Mamradze, head of the Institute for Strategic Management, said that had known Saakashvili well personally since 1992. He assured that the president was talking what he really believed in. He noted that Saakashvili had only three months left to control the country. His power was taken over by the Georgian Dream coalition of Bidzina Ivanishvili who wanted to restore good ties with Russia, Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Mamradze expects Saakashvili to cause havoc, as predicted by Speaker of Parliament David Usupashvili.
