27 February 2006

GPPI Fellow part of the German delegation to the Georgian Security Forum

Sergey Lagodinsky, a GPPi Fellow, represented the Global Public Policy Institute at the recent Georgian Security Forum. He was part of the German Delegation that included diplomats, journalists and political analysts.

 

The Georgian Security Forum that took place in Tiflis from Feb. 16- 20 2006 was hosted by the Minister of Defense of Georgia and International Security Advisory Board, a group of independent international experts providing strategic advice to newly independent countries. The event was an excellent forum for GPPi to explore energy security issues and see first hand how important questions of governance relate to security questions.

 

The Georgian government officials used the forum to demonstrate their country’s progress on the road to NATO and EU membership. In his speech to the Forum shown on Georgian TV, the President of the country, Mikhael Saakashvilli, addressed both the international community and his own nation. He provided examples of local defense and social reforms to demonstrate that Georgia is "a fully consolidated democracy according to any criteria." Georgia’s longing for NATO membership has been supported by the former president of the OSCE parliamentary Assembly Bruce George who praised it as a "small country with a big heart and high aspirations," which is on its way to acquiring NATO membership (though far away from becoming a EU member). His assessment was shared by representatives of the International Security Advisory Board who presented their final report about the state of progress of security reforms in Georgia. The report concluded that despite the need for more effective implementation of intended reforms, Georgia is "well into the process of modernization."

 

Frank Boland from the NATO Defense Policy and Planning Division was more cautious in his analysis, warning against undertaking unrealistic changes and engaging in projects that overstretch the armed forces and thus jeopardize their long-term transformation. Though he admitted that the NATO is "not neutral" but rather sympathetic to Georgia’s aspirations, he emphasized that "the strategic defense review will be careful." "We want to be sure that this process is addressed in a thorough way," added Frank Boland.

 

Vladimir Socor from the Jamestown Foundation and one of the featured experts at the conference addressed the issue of energy security of the country. He warned Europe against overdependence on Russian gas supplies and called for joint efforts by European and American governments to reorient their energy imports towards the Caspian region. "Gas only smells like gas," said Socor advocating increased energy cooperation with countries like Iran and Turkmenistan.

 

Overall the conference demonstrated the seriousness of Georgia’s political establishment to integrate in the Western security structures and enthusiastic support for these intentions on behalf of influential (though no more active) Western politicians. The diversity of analysis of the current political and security situation in Georgia was lacking and was the biggest flaw of the conference. The overemphasis placed on the government and pro-government perspectives worked to undermine the credibility of the message that the conference intended to send.

 

To complete the picture of the current situation in Georgia Sergey Lagodinsky met with several leaders of Georgian opposition outside of the conference including the former Foreign Minister Salome Surabishvilli, the leader of the Republican Party David Usupashvilli, as well as the President of the Young Lawyers Association Anna Dolidze.

 

Useful links:

 

Civil Georgia http://www.civil.ge/eng/

 

Georgian Young Lawyers Association http://www.gyla.ge/  (in English from March 1, 2006 onwards)

Georgia Military Guide of the GlobalSecurity.org http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/georgia/index.html

 

Georgian Office of the Friedrich Ebert Foundation http://www.fes.ge  

 

The World Fact Book of the Central Intelligence Agency http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/gg.html

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