In a DW interview, Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili spoke about anxiety with Russia led to by way of protests on the streets of Tbilisi, and her country's need to put the Soviet previous behind and be part of the european Union.
After violent protests in Tbilisi that Moscow blamed on "Russophobic hysteria," Russia banned flights to Georgia, Russian state-managed media urged travelers to cancel journeys to the country and known as into query the pleasant of Georgian wine. The protests in the Georgian capital begun in late June, prompted via a visit by Russian lawmakers, and continued for very nearly three weeks. at least 240 people have been injured. President Salome Zurabishvili was pressured to reduce her international visits brief to come back domestic.
DW spoke with Zurabishvili, Georgia's first female president, prior this week on the sidelines of a discussion board in Batumi, Georgia, on the event of the tenth anniversary of the japanese Partnership.
DW: The japanese Partnership includes the european Union and six eastern European nations. it be a vital application on your nation. at the same time, Georgia has an extended history of members of the family, and rather strong financial ties, to Russia. How do you find a balance between a really clear need to be a part of the european Union — and perhaps even of NATO — and Georgia's Soviet past and ties with Russia?
Salome Zurabishvili: Very with ease, because there is only one viewpoint. There can be ties, there could be the past that we are slowly getting over, however the perspective for Georgia these days is terribly clear. since independence [after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991], there has been a steady move toward the ecu Union.
That doesn't suggest that we wouldn't have challenges. we now have had frozen conflicts, and we had a war in 2008. [Editor's note: The August 2008 war with Russia resulted in the secession of the provinces of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, both of which were backed by Russia.] we now have 20% of the territory occupied, and we've the occupation line — which is a continuing difficulty — and we've had the recent tensions with Russia. but in a method we are used to that, and that has in no way proved to be a deterrent for Georgia to continue relocating toward the european Union. That is terribly inherent to Georgian nature, lifestyle and background. Georgia feels itself [to be] European.
study greater: Opinion: Georgia caught up in Russia's geopolitical power battle
For practically three weeks there have been highway protests in Tbilisi, where Russia gave the impression to be an incredible theme. What does the relationship with Russia look like right now?
The natural, very spontaneous protest is the explanation why we should still be along with our European partners, involved about the open wound of these conflicts and occupied territories. anything else that isn't solved is rarely some thing the inhabitants can accept for a very long time. Georgia has fully and officially renounced any use of drive. Georgia doesn't have the diplomatic capacity at this stage to get to the bottom of this problem, as a result of we should not have diplomatic members of the family with Russia. I consider that become the leading message of the protests — that we should do whatever thing about it. all and sundry. That capacity our European partners and everyone who is in the Geneva format, which should be heightened at a political stage. [Editor's note: The Geneva International Discussions were launched in Switzerland in October 2008 to address the consequences of the war in Georgia.] So it turns into in reality valuable to remedy the situation and no t simplest to preserve it at a technical level. and that's the message that has been despatched from the streets in Georgia.
Do you communicate with the Kremlin? Do you communicate to President Putin on a regular groundwork?
it be not the case. We [have not had] diplomatic members of the family, when you consider that Russia [occupied] our territories [after the 2008 war]. it is why we count on our companions to be, if no longer mediators, then at the least advocates for Georgia, so that Russia understands that it has to have a relationship with its neighbors in line with mutual admire, on recognize of concepts of the international law. it is a method to construct more balance within the place.
study greater: Putin rejects sanctions on Georgia
How long does Georgia deserve to develop into fit for membership within the European Union?
Of course no one knows the number of years. This quantity doesn't depend on Georgia being healthy, because we are doing everything we are able to. It relies upon additionally on the readiness of the european Union to come to a decision about its personal future. What is awfully critical for us is to get into guidelines and courses where Georgia is already able to accomplish that [but not yet participating]. and thru this piecemeal method, we [will] be a member someday. We may still be supported during this manner, because we are becoming onto the path of reforms that is the most complex, essentially the most difficult system. And it wants economic and all types of political guide.
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