Margvelashvili calls for forceful consequences to Russia’s actions

Georgia’s President has drawn parallels between Russia’s current actions in Ukraine and its invasion in Georgia in 2008.

Giorgi Margvelashvili revealed his thoughts in an interview with international news outlet Agence France-Presse (AFP) on Tuesday.

Margvelashvili said the failure of the international community to punish Russia for its 2008 invasion of Georgia had let Moscow think it can get away with seizing Ukraine's Crimea region.

"The fact that the 2008 scenario used by Russia in Georgia -- when a sovereign state's territories were seized with military force -- is now being employed again in 2014 against another country proves that in the last six years both we and our partners have failed to stand up to Russia," Margvelashvili told AFP.

"Today we can state with regret that we and the international community have failed to use these six years to force Russia to realise that actions like these are wrong and ineffective.”

Margvelashvili said Russian moves to give passports to people living in Crimea echoed tactics used in the run-up to the 2008 war and called for international reaction this time and be forceful enough to stop any future territorial aggression by the Kremlin.

"A strong and unequivocal response must be formulated that means such scenarios can never be repeated and that the idea of a (Russian) sphere of influence is dropped," Margvelashvili said.

In regards to Georgia signing an Association Agreement with the European Union scheduled for this summer, the Georgian President said the Ukrainian example "forces us to be more vigilant”.

Last year, Ukraine was about to sign the same kind of document however then-President Victor Yanukovych, under pressure from Moscow, cancelled the agreement, which led the country into disarray.