Civil Georgia, Georgia
March 22 2009

Saakashvili on Turkish-proposed Caucasus Stability Platform

Civil Georgia, Tbilisi / 22 Mar.’09 / 19:11

President Saakashvili said the Turkish-proposed Caucasus Stability and
Cooperation Platform had no `clear shape’ yet and consultations were
on their `very early stage.’

`We always welcome multilateral mechanism,’ Saakashvili said while
speaking at a news conference on a sideline of a high-profile Brussels
Forum late on March 21.

He, however, also added: `I think we should not create any mechanism
that would exclude European Union or other big players in the region.’

`I think there should not be exclusive regional mechanisms; but I
think any complementarity to already existing European Union
structures, open to any positive actors in the region will be
welcome[d].’

He welcomed the approval of, as he put it, `a long-awaited’ Eastern
Partnership initiative by EU leaders on March 21 ` the program aimed
at EU’s closer cooperation with Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia,
Moldova and Ukraine.

Saakashvili said the initiative was `a step forward for my country and
the countries of the region.’

`What we are seeing now is not a new sphere of influence ` as one
speaker put it this morning ` but we are having a new mechanism for
stability, for development and eventually for prosperity of our
region,’ Saakashvili said, referring to remarks made by Russian
Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, at the same forum earlier on March
21.

`We are accused of trying to have spheres of influence. What is the
Eastern Partnership?’ Lavrov said. `When my good friend [the Czech
Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg] publicly says that if Belarus
recognizes Abkhazia and South Ossetia, Belarus could forget about
Eastern Partnership. Is it threatening, is it blackmail or is it
democracy at work?.. And then after those type[s] of statements we
have questions – is it about pulling countries from the positions
which they are supposed to take freely?’

At the same press conference in Brussels, President Saakashvili also
welcomed EU leaders’ decision to approve in principle proposals on the
bloc’s energy policy, including on Nabucco gas pipeline. The proposal,
some details of which yet need to be hammered out, requires the
approval of the European Parliament before becoming law, Reuters
reported. Saakashvili said that Georgia `has already secured its own
energy independence’ and the country no longer experienced energy
disruptions.

Saakashvili also said that compared to other countries of the region,
Georgia was `doing relatively better, thanks to the fact that we have
done reforms in the past.’

`Right now despite Russia’s occupation and Georgia’s post-war
troubles, the country is on the move; I think that in overall the mood
of the people [despite] the problems is positive,’ he added.