US ex-Ambassador to Georgia Richard Norland said at a meeting with students of the Tbilisi State University that Georgians had treated the Abkhaz people and Ossetians about the same way as the Russians had treated Georgians and will have to apologize for that.
Gocha Mirtskhulava, Director General of Georgian Hot News, told Vestnik Kavkaza that the ambassador had also said that the US policy towards the occupied territories had not changed. He also reminded that Andrey Sakharov had called Georgia a little empire in the early 1990s. The same had been said about Abkhazia, provoking outrage among the Georgian population. The same reaction can be seen now.
The expert called Norland one of the most skilled US ambassadors ever to work in Georgia. He believes that the diplomat’s words were a hint for an apology to the Abkhaz and Ossetian public.
Alexey Vlasov, Executive Director of the North-South Center for Political Analysis and Editor-in-Chief of Vestnik Kavkaza, noted that the situation could not be changed with mere apologies. It could have been done in 2003, early on in Saakashvili's rule. Vlasov has doubts that apologies could change anything after the 2008 events. The public of Sukhumi and Tskhinvali is not in the mood for that. Whether the situation would change in 2-3 years is too early to say, the expert explains. It is a question towards Abkhazia, not Moscow.
Georgian President Georgy Margvelashvili said during inauguration that Georgia will start new policy of peaceful unification and will not use force for that.
US ex-Ambassador to Georgia Richard Norland said at a meeting with students of the Tbilisi State University that Georgians had treated the Abkhaz people and Ossetians about the same way Russians had treated Georgians and will have to apologize for that.Gocha Mirtskhulava, Director General of Georgian Hot News, told Vestnik Kavkaza that the ambassador had also said that the US policy towards the occupied territories had not changed. He also reminded that Andrey Sakharov had called Georgia a little empire in the early 1990s. The same had been said about Abkhazia, provoking outrage among the Georgian population. The same reaction can be seen now.The expert called Norland one of the most skilled US ambassadors ever to work in Georgia. He believes that the diplomat’s words were a hint for apologies towards the Abkhaz and Ossetian public.Alexey Vlasov, Executive Director of the North-South Center for Political Analysis and Editor-in-Chief of Vestnik Kavkaza, noted that the situation could not be changed with any apologies. It could have been done in 2003, the times of early Saakashvili. Vlasov has doubts that apologies would change anything after the 2008 events. The public of Sukhumi and Tskhinvali is not in the mood for that. Whether the situation would change in 2-3 years is too early to say, the expert explains. It is a question towards Abkhazia, not Moscow.Georgian President Georgy Margvelashvili said during inauguration that Georgia will start new policy of peaceful unification and will not use force for that.
