Volski: Georgia must defend its interests across international formats—especially in Geneva

“The Geneva format is largely ineffective: so many meetings have been held, with absolutely no result. The intention was precisely to get the UN observer mission out of Georgia somehow, which Saakashvili managed in June 2009,” said MP Gia Volski, First Vice Speaker of the Georgian Parliament.

He noted that until 2009, Russia was still formally accountable to the UN Security Council quarterly, but Saakashvili succeeded in terminating that mission, allegedly replacing it with an EU mission.

“We are grateful for the monitoring of the occupation line, but the function it was supposed to perform, as Saakashvili told us, does not exist. The only good thing is the Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism (IPRM), which no longer works in Abkhazia. What happens in Geneva falls short of every requirement. I think Giorgi Zurabashvili, with his experience, will rise to the occasion in the Geneva format. Russia must bear greater responsibility and accountability on certain issues. Meetings begin and end within 15 minutes because issues are raised from the outset that are completely incompatible with each other’s interests. In this regard, Russia gained a total advantage, and that was triggered by Saakashvili’s decision. I do not know what the future holds, but a highly experienced diplomat, someone who knows his trade and loves his country, will lead our position. Georgia must protect its interests, including within international formats, and especially in Geneva,” Volski stated.