By the hereof joint letter, we would like to respond to the organized attack of some “Georgian Dream” members or the “retired” members on the US Ambassador, Mme. Kelly Degnan and their openly misleading narrative on the alleged attempts of the USA to engage Georgia in the war, which boosts the anti-Western campaign in Georgia and contradicts our national interests.
We believe that this triggered misleading campaign that our colleagues are engaged in poses a threat to our national security interests and that’s why we would like to once again explain to them and to our society that the war is a continuation of Russian politics through different methods.
It is quite simple to explain the reasons why Kremlin strives to support the misleading statements about the USA trying to drag Georgia into the war: Russia started the war against Georgia resulting in the protracted occupation, thousands of IDPs in their own homeland, militarization and annexation of our territories by Russia. And we are still in this war, where Russia uses hybrid war tactics since it is interested in bringing Georgia back under own control and influence and exercising the domestic and foreign policy according to the Russian agenda. Russia, using the hybrid war tactics, opposes the values of Georgia that we share with the West, which is enshrined in the respect to the sovereignty of the country, democratization, provision of welfare and security, as well as the EU and NATO integration to create additional security and welfare umbrella for Georgia.
Hereby, we provide simple arguments of the disinformation about the alleged desire of the USA to drag Georgia into the war:
The USA is a key strategic partner to Georgia serving as a pillar for the non-recognition policy of the territories occupied by Russia and hence, the territorial integrity and sovereignty principles, as well as the democracy and welfare of the country and the integration into NATO. For years, the bi-party approved Act by the - - US Law-makers on Support of Georgia underlines the intact support of the USA to the sovereignty, independence, territorial integrity and the European and Euro-Atlantic integration of Georgia as the NATO aspirant country, and the right of the Georgian citizens to determine the future, foreign and security policy of their country without the interference or coercion by another country;
It is noteworthy that the Bill envisages intensified military support to Georgia along with other NATO member states, which underlines the importance of the close economic cooperation of the USA with the regional countries and the provision of energy security. Against the background of the balance of the strategic powers at the Black Sea disordered in favor of Russia (by occupying Abkhazia and its coastal line by Russia in 1993, and annexation of Crimea in 2014), Georgia acquires even more particular function in the Black Sea Security Initiative by NATO.
As the NATO aspiration country, Georgia diversely contributes to the NATO Black Sea Security Initiative, including the mutual exchange of information, visits and joint exercises of NATO member states’ military fleet in our waters, and the improvement of inter-operability; this cooperation and joint efforts boosts the security of Georgia and the wider Black Sea region;
And finally, based on the above-mentioned arguments, we try to clarify that the misleading statements and the anti-Western campaign decline and undermine the declared interests of Georgia and enhance the goal of the informative war by Russia.
Hence, we call on our colleagues in the Parliament to act in line with the declared national security interests of the country; we also call on the Georgian Government to timely and adequately respond to the misleading campaign aiming at bolstering the anti-Western attitudes, against the common Western values and declining the sovereignty and territorial integrity of our country.