Forbes puublished an article headlined "Russia Is A Threat To Georgia, Says Former Defense Minister" devoted to the unsettled Georgian-Russian conflict.
"Breaking international law and implementing an aggressive foreign policy towards neighboring countries, Russia has quickly emerged as a new international security threat. This year’s military invasion of Ukraine, finally, has directed the world’s attention to problems that have been evident at least since the brief Russian-Georgian war in 2008, which resulted in the Russian occupation of 20% of Georgia’s territories, as well as the ongoing conflict in Transnistria," the article begins.
"Lately, the confrontation between Russia and the West has moved towards a new Cold War, as Russia continues military actions in Ukraine, terrorizes the Baltics and pressures Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Belarus in an attempt to keep them in its sphere of influence, the article reads.
"With Georgia and the Baltic countries increasingly worried about their security, the Halifax International Security Forum – an annual global security summit held at the end of November in Canada – invited Georgia’s former Minister of Defense, Irakli Alasania, to share his views on the situation in the region. “I believe that the time has come to take firm steps in regard to Russia, in terms of posing economic and financial sanctions, as well as employing the military deterrent factor – about the same as it was during the Cold War,” Alasania says. In his opinion, the combination of sanctions and military deterrent factors will gradually neutralize the threat coming from Russia," the article reads.
Irakli Alasania has been regarded as a pro-western figure in a government heavily influenced by pro-Russian oligarch Bidzina Ivanishvili. Has was removed from his position right before the forum but hasn’t bid farewell to Georgian politics, shifting to the opposition party, Forbes notes.
"As a former defense minister and now as a politician – in view of the current dramatic developments in the region, increasing confrontation between Russia and the West and the Russian occupation of 20% of our country’s territory – I view the threat coming from the north very seriously. That is exactly why I focused all my efforts and energy on improving our defense arsenal and strengthening our defense capability. This is the only way to prevent possible aggression. Events taking place in Ukraine, as well as the movement of Russian armed forces in the North Caucasus, hold such a threat. Georgia is under serious threat, since the Abkhazia and Tskhinvali regions are already occupied by Russia. There are approximately 12,000 Russian troops on our territory. And therefore, we should always assess this threat properly and adequately," Forbes quotes Alasania as saying.
"However, I do not want to seed an apocalyptic feeling in our society that this aggression cannot be averted. I want to say that the most correct way to prevent this aggression is a rapid implementation of the agreement reached with NATO. We should place as much NATO-Georgian infrastructure on our territory as possible. We should launch more military rotation training programs in Georgia with the participation of the US and NATO militaries. It is essential that we carry on the work that we started at the Ministry of Defense. And by that I mean purchasing equipment and defense capabilities for our armed forces. All of this is very important in order to create a stable environment for the economic development of the country and to make the most of the opportunities we acquired by signing the association agreement with Europe," the former Georgian minister added.
