A. My perception of Georgian-American relations is that these relations are one of the most active directions of Georgian foreign policy. Though the US is far away from the region geographically, the interests of this great country—the only superpower for the region where Georgia located—is very important. By the way, this is not a one-way relationship; this is a two-way relationship, and I can say that our relationships are very active. First of all, in the field of economics, political exchange is very active. Our dialogue is multi-dimensional, and should be oriented toward different things - not only Georgia. It seems more important to me to have dialogue about many aspects of life in our region.
Q. What opportunities exist for the American business community in Georgia, and how would you assess the business environment for American investors? Are you, as Ambassador, pursuing the goal of encouraging American investments?
A. First of all, the main direction of my activity in this country is promotion of Georgian economic interests, and in this respect, Georgia is a part of the region. We, in Georgia, are trying to create a very positive investment environment for investors from any other country, and particularly, for American business people. In this respect, I would like to mention that the Georgian parliament recently adopted a pro-business investment law, which gives foreign investors considerable freedom in actions. At the same time, there is still a lot to be done in Georgia; though the World Bank, IMF and other international financial institutions give Georgia high grades for its approach in creating long and painful ways of reform, we still try not to overestimate our successes. We understand that we should do much more before American or any other foreign business people will feel as comfortable in Georgia as in other countries in which they are accustomed to working.
Q. There were many rumors and reports that Georgia was unstable, and that there were some criminal activities and political instability due to Western-antagonized conflicts over investments. What situation exists now? Is the situation stable?
A. I could say that for us—for Georgians, for our
country and, as I understand, for the whole region—Georgia is in a unique
location. These were very negative events. We have gone through very
negative things. You already mentioned the criminal activity, confusion
over democracy with anarchy, confusion over a market economy with an oriental
bazaar. In troubled waters, someone would try to fish his own fish.
However, now we are becoming a normal country; we are stable, while we
still have certain problems in some regions of Georgia. First of all, there
are ongoing problems in Abkhazia—a situation which is beyond the control
of the Georgian central authority. Nevertheless, we hope that in the future
we will solve this problem. By the way, it might be interesting to find
new means for solving this problem. One of them may be involvement of the
business interests. The bottom line here would be to involve Abkhazians
and Georgians who live there in business cooperation. By this, solving
many ethnic and other conflicts will be possible.
Presently, Georgia is stable. Georgia is peaceful and open. While we
have many problems, Georgia is on the right track.
Q. Each time you travel to Tbilisi, you probably see many changes.
A. Many changes. Each time I go to Georgia, and each time somebody from this town goes to Georgia, we all see something different. Georgia is in change and there are many new enterprises...people are more active. There are still some problems, especially in the business sector. I would like to emphasize that we are going through a very painful transitional period, but in many respects this is a normal process.
Q. Let’s talk about democratic reforms. The Western monitors and observers indicated that recent parliamentary elections in Georgia were free and fair. What allowed Georgia to run free and fair elections, which were different from its neighbors?
A. We are delighted by the progress we have achered in this area,
and we hope that we will do better next time. We are still on the
reform path, reforming not only our economy, but also Georgian society.
This includes changes in the psychology of the entire nation. Democracy
is not some kind of coat, which one can put on and say that now he
is a democratic. This is also a long and painful process. Yes, we
have elections. We created democratic institutions. We adopted a
democratic Constitution. We have functioning institutions—the presidency
and parliament. By the way, the President of Georgia, Eduard Shevardnadze,
is one of the assets of Georgia’s statehood. He is probably the only
Georgian statesman who is well-known outside Georgia.
We have a very active, and dynamic parliament. At the same, again, we are
in the process of transformation, and we need to create channels between
these functioning institutions. We need to create channels between Georgian
society and change the psychology of our people to make democracy a way
of life.
The main problem with democracy in Georgia is the creation of
this link to make people understand that democracy is the only way to live.
It may take a generation. If we succeed, we also follow-up with economic
reforms and make democracy viable. Only then may we say that we succeeded.
Q. Talking about generational issues, it seems that Georgian parliamentarians are the youngest in the world. Is this an attempt to prepare future generations of politicians?
A. Foreign visitors, including Americans who visit the Georgian Parliament, have a very good impression of our parliamentary institution and its members. Our Parliament comprises young, well-educated people. Many of them received their education in European countries as well as in the US. They speak two and even three foreign languages, and could work intensively. What I like about them is that they are very open and flexible and they have a clear vision of the country they want to build in the near future. At the same time, there is a flip side to the same generational characteristic; they are young and have less experience. However, the positive characteristics of our parliament outweight the others. It will take some time for the Georgian Parliament to become what Americans call “seasoned politicians.” And I believe they have great potential to become seasoned politicians in the future.
Q. There was a lot of media coverage of the pipeline issues, and of oil shipments from Kazakstan and Azerbaijan through Georgia to the Black sea. What attention did the Georgian government pay to this issue?
A. The pipeline is the crucial and decisive factor for the future of the Georgian economy. Let s put it straight for the future of Georgia: Georgia may become the main transit country for the transport of oil from Azerbaijan. However, I would like to communicate to Americans and others that issues related to pipeline and oil for Georgia as well as for Azerbaijan go beyond oil per se. Our independence is at stake here. If we succeed in this direction and involve many interested countries in these projects, and if Azerbaijan manages to transport its oil to the world markets, then it will mean that Georgia and Azerbaijan remain independent. Of course, there is a big geopolitical game around this issue. In this regard, I remember former US Secretary of State James Baker, who said to me during one of our meetings that this is the most important strategic game of the 21st century. It is very important that Georgia is a part of this game.
Q. In other words, the pipeline has not only economic, but also strategic interest for Georgia?
A. Yes, of course. Many things are going on in the
region, and the dynamics are very interesting. Certain powers in the region,
especially Russia, is trying to promote a “deep integration” of custom
unions in the region. At the same time there is very good communication
between Azerbaijan and Georgia on the level of political leadership, and
very constructive and positive relations between two Presidents.
Communications between Central Asian countries and Georgia are expanding.
Uzbekistan, for example, is using Georgia as a transit route for export
of its cotton; the first shipment of Kazakstani oil by “Chevron” has been
transported to the Georgian port of Batumi. Ukraine is very active
in this region and indicated some serious interest in regard to Azerbaijani
“early oil.”
Our relationship is still very but fragile, ongoing cooperation will
strengthen our ties. I think, further cooperation is very important
for the region...our countries will benefit from that.
Q. In regard to influences, the countries of the Transcaucasus are facing regional powers like Russia, Turkey and Iran. How is Georgia building its relations with these countries?
A. The historic fate of Georgia—as well as of Azerbaijan and Armenia—is shaped by the fact that we are squeezed between these interests—historically and geographically. I would like to suggest the use of the term Southern Caucasus instead of Transcaucasus, which is more accurate. So, we managed to balance these influences, and in this way, we survived as a country and a people. We would like to have normal, good relations with all our neighbors. We have very good relations with Turkey, and normal relations with Iran. We would like to have very good relations with Russia, since we will remain neighbors. We understand that Russia is a big country, which has some interests in the Southern Caucasus, and that Russia is in a painful transition period. However, we cannot identify the Georgia which Russia now wants to see as a neighbor. We hear different opinions about this. In this regard, the Russian business community may be a channel for positive communications between the countries of Russia and Georgia.
Q. There are several conflicts in the Caucasus. Can Georgia play a role as a mediator for the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan?
A. While Georgia has its own conflicts, it certainly can play a positive role in this regard, First, Georgia s location in the center of the region makes this possibility important. Also, historically, Armenians and Azeris lived in Georgia, and now we have a population of Azeris totaling one-half million, and a similar number of Armenians residing on Georgian soil. And we do not have significant problems with them. We understand also what consequences Nagorno-Karabakh conflict creates for the entire region. We support a principle of territorial integrity and an interest of solving the conflict as soon as possible.
I believe that we can find a solution. If there is peace in the Caucasus, there will be enormous opportunities for all people in the region. If our three nations - Armenia, Georgia and Azerbaijan - succeed in this respect, and if we would see what benefits we could receive, then it may help us solve other problems as well. So, collectively, we should get together is some place, and I believe that Tbilisi may be the best option. I do not believe that outsiders are really necessary, but the international community also may play a positive role.
Q. Thank you very much, Ambassador Japaridze. Do you have a message for the readers of Caspian Crossroads?
A. It was my privilege and honor to contribute to your
magazine. I am saying this not as a diplomat. I am reading your magazine
with utmost interest. It gives me, who unfortunately is far
away from the region, an instant picture of what is going on in the region.
At the same time, I would recommend to you to go beyond those problems
which the region is experiencing, and concentrate on opportunities of regional
cooperation. You should give us directions on which politicians and
diplomats may cooperate, describe how we, peoples and countries, should
cooperate, and what options face us. This approach might help policymakers
overcome problems they are facing today.