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NEWS
SEPTEMBER 11 - 17
Ov er riding the Pr esident’ s Over erriding President’ esident’s Veto - An yP alpa ble Any Palpa alpab Results Expected? By Steven Jones Last week, a Member of Parliament from Georgian Dream (GD), Tamaz Mechiauri, blamed ex-Prime Minister Bidzina Ivanishvili for letting “a member of Soros NGO give up his knitting needles and granting him the right to veto.” The Chairman of the Parliamentary Finance and Budget Committee pointed the finger at Georgian President Giorgi Margvelashvili at the plenary session to discuss the President’s Veto over the bill on the National Bank. For his ‘rude’ wording, Mechiauri received harsh criticism even from the inner circle, the Republicans, who play a major role in the Georgian Dream coalition as a pro-western party. Defense Minister Tina Khidasheli countered Mechiauri’s sarcasm by stating she is proud that she served as a Soros NGO representative for years. Representatives of the Presidential Administration who attended the session in Kutaisi assessed the statement as unethical and improper. “Observance of ethics and culture in parliamentary life is desirable and even necessary from any person, especially from an MP,” said Giorgi Kverenchkhiladze the President’s Parliamentary Secretary. According to Mechiauri, the Lari exchange rate is used by the Opposition for fueling protest amongst the population against the government. During the last few months, the Georgian Lari has depreciated dramatically, leading the government to accuse the National Bank (NB) of inactivity. This was the reason GD tried to pass a bill to take the supervisory function from the NB, a bill which was vetoed by the President. Since overriding the veto, President Margvelashvili has stated that he will
Why Montenegro and Not Georgia? Because… By Zviad Adzinbaia
The image that set off the insults: President Giorgi Margvelashvili knitting.
sign the bill as he respects the decision made by the majority. He cites that responsibility lies with the lawmakers that have sturdily protected their positions. There were discussions in numerous public circles as to whether the attack on the Georgian President voiced the general view of the GD coalition towards the presidential institution. Further, it was believed that Mechiauri, who seems to have a strong predilection towards the former PM Bidzina Ivanishvili, mirrored the very position of the person considered to be ruling from the backstage. At the same time, Georgia continues its laborious path towards the Euro-Atlantic space with some lethargy. Russia’s Fifth Column and Soft [but hard] power has been inarguably strong in the country, including its media propaganda. The elections of 2016 are nearing. And, significantly, Georgia still remains in economic shock, which has driven a colossal number of businessmen into a crisis and the majority of citizens into disappointment.
Tina Khidasheli, the Georgian Defense Minister, is staying firmly on her track by effectively continuing her proactive activities regarding Georgia’s accession into NATO. The female Minister has, since coming to office several months ago, continuously urged the West to consider Georgia’s progress at the forthcoming NATO Warsaw Summit set for July 2016. Meanwhile, the Minister utilized the international conference held in Tbilisi Rooms Hotel this week to address the various high-ranking European leaders concerning the security issue in Georgia. Khidasheli expressed her support toward the issue of Montenegro’s accession into NATO, but asked a very clear question: ‘Why Montenegro and not Georgia?’ adding that Montenegro, where, unlike Georgia, only a third of the population supports NATO integration.
Khidasheli discussed the planned Summit, citing that NATO expansion would be the right answer to the challenges which Russia places before the democratic world. “We are facing a problem of strong leadership and what we lack is a strong voice from NATO and the EU,” she emphasized. “If NATO fails in Georgia, it will be a failure in many directions. If NATO shows caution towards Russia, it will pave the way for it, because too many powers and too many people are waiting for NATO to start to get intimidated,” the Minister maintained. According to the Head of the Defense Ministry, the Warsaw Summit should be a response to Russia. “Today, we have heard that if any country deserves NATO membership invitation, this is Montenegro. I fully support its accession, but I have a fundamental question - why Montenegro? It is a country where less than a third of the population is in favor of NATO integration compared to
Georgia, where more than two thirds support NATO membership.” Georgia Today analysis: The answer to Khidasheli’s question might lie behind the announced Georgian Dream politics of Russian normalization that has almost removed Georgia from the influential international stages, where Ukraine has been the major topic of discussion of the last months. It has been a simple issue for even untrained eyes that Ukraine and Georgia were [and are] set to walk on the EuroAtlantic path together with Moldova, which has already been granted a visafree regime in the EU. Some believe that Georgia has seen the last of her golden days for using the international arena to alarm the international community about her security and Russia’s potential expansion through her, its southern neighbor, despite the fact that Russia has already occupied one fourth of Georgia’s sovereign territory.
Par tner ship Fund Launc hes artner tnership Launches Constr uction of Air cr aft Ma terials Construction Aircr craft Materials The Partnership Fund, together with Israeli company Elbit Cyclone, launched construction of a factory which will produce aircraft materials. This high-tech manufacturing factory will be located close to the Tbilisi International Airport. “We support the development of high-tech manufacturing. This high-tech plant will be the first of its kind in the history of independent Georgia. I believe that other such large-scale brands will
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also be interested to expand their businesses in the country,” said Irakli Kovzanadze, CEO of the Partnership Fund, at the ground breaking presentation ceremony. The factory will produce aircraft doors, aerodynamic surfaces and other aircraft components made from composite materials. The main consumers of these products are: Boeing, Bombardier, Airbus, Sukhoi, and others.
The $85 million project will employ around 300 locals who will be trained by leading specialists from Israel. 100 % of the production manufactured by the plant will be exported. Royal Development will construct the factory, while the operating company will be JSC Aerostructure Technologies Cylone (ATC) which is a sister company set up jointly by the Partnership Fund and Elbit Cyclone.