Ivanishvili is ready to send a special representative to Russia
The Prime Minister of Georgia, Bidzina Ivanishvili, announced that he had decided to entrust the resumption of dialogue with Russia to the Georgian ambassador to Russia from 1998-2004, Zurab Abashidze. "We share a long history with Russia, we have lived together for a long time," the head of the Cabinet said, "so we must first restore our relations and then raise them to a new level."
Ivanishvili said that present-day Russian-Georgian relations are "complex", noting that many Georgians live in Russia, "feeding their families in Georgia, there are many mixed families, while the cultural ties account for several centuries." He added that "Zurab Abashidze has friends in Russia, and it will help him to cope with some of the problems between Russia and Georgia." Among these problems, Ivanishvili mentioned Abkhazia, South Ossetia and "the territorial integrity of Georgia as a whole."
The prime minister believes that the priority task is to organize the export of Georgian citrus fruits to the Russian market by the end of the current year. However, he ruled out the possibility of restoring diplomatic relations with Russia as long as there are Russian embassies in Sukhumi and Tskhinvali and expressed the hope that Moscow will accept his proposed format of relations with the special representatives. Ivanishvili hopes that the president or the prime minister of Russia, in turn, will appoint a special representative for relations with Georgia.
"In the meantime, I have to say that I haven't had any formal or informal contacts with Moscow," the prime minister added. Previously he has openly expressed his bewilderment with the fact that Moscow had not congratulated him on his election. Ivanishvili believes that Georgia's aspiration to become a NATO member should not hinder good relations with Russia, "there is no better choice than Europe and NATO, but we must try to establish friendly relations with Russia." At the same time he lamented that Saakashvili remains the president of Georgia: "It does not hinder, but it also does not facilitate restoring a dialogue with Russia after the provocations he organized in 2008."
In turn, his special representative pledged to "do everything possible to restore dialogue, taking into consideration the present complex circumstances." Zurab Abashidze made it clear that he was ready to fly to Moscow for negotiations in the near future. Zurab Abashidze is the son of a renowned Georgian poet, the editor-in-chief of the Georgian Encyclopedia, Irakli Abashidze. He is considered one of the most highly-skilled diplomats in the country. Prior to his appointment in 1998 as ambassador to Russia, Abashidze worked as the representative of Georgia to NATO.