GEORGIAN MINISTER DENIES OPPOSITION CLAIMS HE IS GAZPROM’S "EMISSARY"

Rustavi-2 TV, Tbilisi,
8 Nov 06

Georgia’s State Minister for Economic Reforms, Kakha Bendukidze,
has hit back at opposition claims that he is lobbying on behalf of
Russia’s state-owned gas company, Gazprom.

The opposition was referring to a statement made by Bendukidze in
March 2006 in saying that his "personal" view was that there was no
danger in selling Gazprom the trunk gas pipeline which carries gas
from Russia to Georgia and Armenia. On 7 November the deputy chairman
of Gazprom’s board, Aleksandr Medvedev, said that the company might
sell Georgia gas at a lower price in exchange for assets.

Speaking in parliament on 8 November, opposition Republican MP Davit
Berdzenishvili described Bendukidze as Gazprom’s "emissary".

"Russia’s state-owned company Gazprom has an economic business
partner and political emissary in the Georgian government – Kakha
Bendukidze. The position of most members of parliament, whether they
are in the majority or opposition, will not be defined until we hear
a clear statement on what the Georgian government is going to do.

Today we are in a position when the supplier of gas is the
Russian state while the recipient here is also the Russian state
[through Russian-owned companies]. Bendukidze is encouraging this,"
Berdzenishvili said in remarks broadcast by Imedi TV.

Bendukidze flatly denied that he was supporting the sale of the trunk
gas pipeline to Gazprom.

"No assets will be exchanged for a gas price. This will not happen
under any circumstances. Besides, as I have already told you, under
blackmail it makes absolutely no sense to sign any significant contract
on exchanging assets or anything else. Of course we must not agree
to that. Eventually, we will secure several sources of gas supplies,
and that will be it," Bendukidze told Rustavi-2 TV’s Business Kurieri
programme.

Speaking at a news briefing a little earlier, Bendukidze also condemned
opposition suggestions that companies in the hands of Russian investors
should be nationalized: "As regards the opposition, they are shameless
people, as you know. They are now developing some new ideas, gradually
drifting towards leftist politics, far-leftist politics. I have read
several interesting articles by members of our opposition and by
people on their election lists. They are laughable, these articles
are written in a clear communist style. It would be better for them
to be called Georgia’s Communist-Bolshevik party instead of New Right
and Republicans. That would better reflect their actions and level
of development than their current names," Bendukidze said.