Georgia won’t participate in so-called 3+3 regional platform in Moscow
Georgian Foreign Minister David Zalkaliani also underscored that Georgia’s engagement in this regional platform ‘will be very hard when we see no process towards de-occupation,’ noting that sovereignty and territorial integrity are ‘red lines’ for the Georgian government. Photo: Nino Alavidze/Agenda.ge.
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The Georgian Foreign Ministry has reiterated that Georgia will not be present at a regional meeting scheduled for December 10 in Moscow in the so-called 3+3 format proposed by Turkey and Iran in 2020 which includes Russia, Azerbaijan and Armenia, RFE/RL's Georgian service reports.
The ministry said earlier that despite refusal to participate in this regional initiative, it offers Azerbaijan and Armenia its own format of discussions to keep the peace in the region.
The Deputy Foreign Ministers of Azerbaijan, Armenia, Russia, Iran and Turkey will attend the meeting in Moscow.
In October of this year the Georgian Foreign Ministry released a statement which read that the country is not considering taking part in the meeting with Russia.
Georgian Foreign Minister David Zalkaliani also underscored that Georgia’s engagement in this regional platform ‘will be very hard when we see no process towards de-occupation,’ noting that sovereignty and territorial integrity are ‘red lines’ for the Georgian government.
Georgia and Russia suspended their diplomatic ties following the Russia-Georgia war in 2008. However, two countries have continued trade and economic discussions since 2013 under the Georgian Dream government with Georgian-Russian informal dialogue, which involves Georgian Prime Minister’s special representative for relations with Russia Zurab Abashidze and former Russian deputy foreign minister Gregory Karasin.
Following the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, which is a landlocked region in southwest Azerbaijan near the southeastern border of Armenia, in 2020 Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan put forward the idea of launching a six-nation platform that includes the cooperation of Turkey, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia, Russia and Iran in order to establish stability and peace in the region.
The Georgian Prime Minister’s special representative for relations with Russia Zurab Abashidze and Russian ex-deputy foreign minister Gregory Karasin met online earlier today. Georgia and Russia, which have suspended their diplomatic ties following the Russia-Georgia war, hold trade and economic talks since 2013, under the Georgian Dream governance.
The Georgian Foreign Ministry says that statements made by FM David Zalkaliani during a recent interview about a cooperation format proposed by Turkey and Iran which would include Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia and Russia has been ‘misinterpreted’ by the media.
US Ambassador to Georgia Kelly Degnan has responded to the recent statement of Russian FM Sergey Lavrov on preparedness to restore relations with Georgia, stating that Georgia ‘has many times heard’ such messages from Russia and they are not trustworthy until Russia withdraws its troops from the Georgian territory. She said that Russia ‘has taken no steps so far’ to de-occupy Georgia’s Abkhazia and Tskhinvali regions.
Russia says it is ready to restore relations with Georgia ‘to the extent Georgia is ready for this,’ expressing hope that ‘common sense will prevail in Tbilisi’ and it will start developing relations with its currently Russian-occupied Abkhazia and Tskhinvali regions ‘as independent states.’
The Georgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) says it is ‘unacceptable’ that the Georgian flag appeared at the so-called 3+3 regional cooperation initiative held on December 10 in Moscow in which the country refused to participate.
Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu has stated that the next so-called 3+3 regional meeting, proposed by Turkey and Iran in 2020 and including Russia, Azerbaijan and Armenia, is expected to take place in Ankara, Turkey, and the latter looks forward to the participation of Georgia as well.
The meeting between Georgian and Russian expert circles in Moscow on March 24 was a “private initiative” and Georgian state structures “did not participate” in it, Zurab Abashidze, the Special Representative of the Georgian Prime Minister for Relations with Russia, said on Friday.
The Georgian foreign office on Sunday said the country would not participate in a meeting of the so-called "3+3 format" taking place on Monday in Iran’s capital city of Tehran that would bring together officials from Iran, Russia, Azerbaijan and Armenia.
Georgian Parliament Speaker Shalva Papuashvili on Tuesday ruled out Georgia’s participation in “any format that involves a country occupying Georgia’s territories”, after Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Tuesday said the Kremlin “assumed” Georgia would feature in a format of discussions over stability in the South Caucasus region.