The Polish Institute of International Affairs hosted on the 1 Dec. 2014 President of Georgia Giorgi Margvelashvili who gave the lecture under above mention title. Here are non authorized fragments of this speech
A month ago we hared that Russia had signed an agreement with so-called Abkhazia Republic, which of part of Georgia. Now, we had heard from Ossetia, which is also a part of Georgia occupied by Russia, that this part is going to sign the similar agreement which is threatening and undermining Georgia,s sovereignty and integrity of the country. I represent a peaceful country, the country which is devoted to common future, common goals and which is under constant pressure and threat and punishment for its free decisions and policy which is targeting for European integration. Let’s me try to summarize the latest developments in my country and how I see the future of the country and of the whole region.
Georgia has achieved a lot in 2014. These achievements have been developed trough Georgian efforts as well as trough very impressive and coordinated partnership with our friends in the West. Let’s us start with the very important Association Agreement with the EU which has been signed this summer. The Association Agreement has opened the great opportunities to my country and it is the step forward to a country that views itself as a part of European culture and as part of European family of nations. This agreement has been signed jointly by Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine as a part of Eastern Partnership process. The Agreement has created the great opportunities for our cooperation, for our partnership because is laying real roads for trade, tourism, connecting joint policy as well reform process, which is going to influence social, political lives of Georgia. And Georgia is actually very happy and excited with this step that we are making to achieve the EU.
Georgia has also stated at that point that our next step will be eventually membership in the EU. We have declared very clearly our targets and set up our goals and we will be moving in this direction.
Another very important step that has been made by Georgia jointly with our friends was the NATO summit in Wells where we have agreed that Georgia is developing its package together with NATO, the package which helping Georgia’s defense security as well as its integration process with North Atlantic Treaty. In the context of security Georgia has done a lot as a country which contributed to NATO’s mission. Georgia is currently present in ASAF mission, and is the biggest not NATO member contributor to ASAF process, as well as did participate in EU led operations in Central African Republic. We are continuing also today our membership in ASAF.
In 2014 we have also made steps forward for the regional partnership which engage the Caspian basin See countries, Azerbaijan as well as Turkey in developing further and further our energy security projects. Those projects, I believe, would be interesting not only for the countries engaged in the region but also for our partners in Europe as well as in Central Asia. A step forward in this respect and the further development of cooperation is creating an effective opportunity of Euro-Asian partnership and Georgia as a gate for it. In this context we can say that Black See has become in 20014 a see or European partnership, in a way an European see.
As we are looking at the countries in the region we can see Georgia which has signed the Association Agreement with the EU, Moldova, Ukraine, also Turkey which has special connection and relations with the EU and of course we have Russia. In this context we try to push and talk about Black See as a new kind of European cooperation, about Europe, its needs, and development about the projects which are beneficiary not only for the countries which are in place, but also for the countries that are getting their gateways to the shores to Georgia. This was a significant step forward which has interesting perspectives in the context of regional partnership and consequently the new step forward stability of the Caucasus. I believe that all countries are engaged in this process which goes from Black to Caspian See are contributing to stability of the region.
As we are talking about the Black See we see that whole concept of security in Black See has got in 2014 the serious problem. The Crimea was annexed by the Russian Federation and we see that processes which are developing in this are not unfortunately leaving to further partnership between nations. In this respect we are enhancing our cooperation with European partners. One of the reasons for being here in Poland, in the nation which traditionally has done o lot for Georgia is to set up the agenda for future cooperation, for future integration processes. All of it have done very interested experiences, very interesting processes – how they engaged themselves in the European process, how looked they experiences and very hard homework which has been done for years for the cause of becoming the member of the EU. In this respect we are trying to set up and copy some of the specific Polish examples. National Security of Georgia and Poland have already signed an agreement on constant partnership and I believe the same process will be continued on the others levels in the near future which will secure the effective homework for future membership of Georgia in the EU and NATO.
In summing up I have to say tat we are seeing the opportunities that were creating but also the price related to it. We see Ukraine which we consider as basic continuation of Russian policy which has happened in Georgia in 2008, we see Crimea annexation, we continuation of a foreign policy of Russian Federation which is basically targeting its neighbors as its own backyard where they have the right to decide political issues based on military force. If the ex Soviet Union nations are looking for equal treatment, if they, as Russia says, misbehave, they should be put, by military force, on the right track.
This is an environment which the country of the region is living in. If there is a mistake, or miscalculation in their policy they will be immediately punished trough military operations. When we are talking about 2015 and taking into considerations all these complications as well opportunities of this period which will possibly give outcome to those issue those outcome will be rational, peaceful and build on interest, the national interest of the nations engaged in the process of global security and stability.
I believe that 2015 will bring a lot of answers – rational and positive – for Georgia, as a part of this process, primarily from the perspective of national interest, regional security, the respect for international law and the respect for the interests of our neighbors and alliances.
