What are Georgia’s main security challenges?
Tweet 
Share
The number of Georgian citizens willing to be involved in terrorist activities significantly reduced in 2016, says head of Georgia’s State Security Service Vakhtang Gomelauri.
Gomelauri presented the 2016 report to parliament today.
His presentation mainly focused on three aspects: fighting terrorism, revealing corrupt public servants and handling the difficult humanitarian situation in Georgia’s Russian-occupied regions.
The report said that the top security threat for Georgia is Russian occupation.
Gomelauri touched upon terrorism as well saying the country is not at high risk for terrorist attacks, but still there are "some challenges”.
He said that during 2016 the State Security Service revealed several individuals in Georgia connected with the ISIS. An investigation was launched into nine different criminal cases in Georgia in 2016 for funding, supporting or being a member of a terrorist group.
Gomelauri added that corrupt public officials frequently are a potential target for criminal gangs and foreign security services, therefore one of the purposes of the State Security Service is fighting corruption. The agency launched an investigation into 47 cases of alleged corruption crimes in 2016.
Gomelauri also said that the State Security Service revealed foreign citizens who had alleged ties with foreign security services. The agency also learnt their connections with Georgian citizens and permanently monitored them in order to prevent any illegal activities. Gomelauri said that currently such actions are being carried out regarding 99 people, both Georgian or foreign citizens.
The presentation of the report was open to media but the parliament session closed to journalists once Gomelauri finished his presentation and a question-answer session began.
A total of 327 Georgian citizens have been illegally detained by Russian-controlled guards near the two Russian occupation lines in Georgia in 2016, says the Georgian State Security Service in its annual report.
The de-facto leadership of Georgia’s breakaway Abkhazia region has denied that a Georgian prisoner has disappeared from an Abkhazian prison facility, announced Georgia’s State Security Service.
Two Georgian men accused of defrauding at least one victim of tens of thousands of dollars have been arrested by Georgian law enforcers.
Seven people have been arrested and charged with attempting to carry out terror-related crimes in Georgia. Georgia’s State Security Service (SSS) has prevented a terror attack in Georgia, which aimed to set off five explosions along a Russia-Armenia gas pipeline that passed through Georgian soil.
Georgia is located "on the crossroads of practically every vital interest of the West and East” in the region, says Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili.
Russia should not be given a chance to create distrust towards the European and Euro-Atlantic path and western values, Georgian Foreign Minister Mikheil Janelidze told a group of foreign diplomats and experts in Washington, the United State on Tuesday night.