Tag Archives: Georgia

President flees from Georgian breakaway region

JUNE 1 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Alexander Ankvab, de facto president of Abkhazia, one of Georgia’s two breakaway regions, resigned days after protesters stormed his residence and forced him to flee.

The protesters had been complaining of rampant corruption and a struggling economy. Mr Ankvab, elected in 2011 on a five year term, had initially been defiant after he fled demonstrators on May 27 but, apparently, after a meeting with his Russian sponsors he quit. There is little doubt where real power over Abkhazia lies.

Abkhazia has now set a presidential election for Aug. 24 meaning three months of uncertainty.

Although Akhazia’s independence is recognised by only a few countries, mainly driven by Russian pressure, Georgia is a bystander in Abkhazian politics.

Georgia’s impotency was summed up by its minister for reconciliation, Paata Zakareishvili. In an interview with Georgian media he pointed out that Russia had sent Vladislav Surkov, a senior aide to President Vladimir Putin, to mediate.

“Moscow rules there on the ground,” he said. “They are communicating with each other through Russia.”

As with any power change in Georgia’s two breakaway regions, South Ossetia is the other rebel province, this period of flux is a potentially dangerous one for Georgia as it can trigger instability.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 187, published on JUNE 4 2014)

Inflation slows in Georgia

JUNE 3 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) -Annualised inflation in Georgia slipped back to 2.4% in May, its slowest rate this year, the national statistics agency reported. Compared to April, average prices dropped by 0.3%. Food prices dropped 1.7%. Georgia’s Central Bank is concerned about a generally slowing economy.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 187, published on JUNE 4 2014)

Georgia waits for NATO membership

JUNE 2 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – German Chancellor Angela Merkel said NATO would not offer Georgia a membership deal when it meets in Cardiff, Wales, in September. Ms Merkel’s statement means that Georgia will have to wait further before it is offered a NATO membership, a key plank of its foreign policy. Georgian PM Irakli Garibashvili was visiting Germany.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 187, published on JUNE 4 2014)

Ex-Georgia minister acquitted

MAY 27 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – A court in Georgia acquitted ex-Georgian defence minister Davit Kezerashvili, an associate of former president Mikheil Saakashvili, of money laundering and bribe-taking. Mr Kezerashvili was tried in absentia as he is in France on bail after his extradition request was declined.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 186, published on May 28 2014)

Georgia gas pipeline restarts

MAY 23 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) -Georgia has resumed supplying gas to Armenia through its north-south pipeline after a rock fall earlier this month damaged it, Gazprom- Armenia said. The pipeline from Russia through Georgia is the main supply route to Armenia. Rock falls, though, are a problem and can trigger shortages each year.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 186, published on May 28 2014)

Abkhaz protesters storm presidential administration in Georgia

MAY 27 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) -Protesters stormed the presidential administration in the Georgian rebel region of Abkhazia, forcing Aleksandr Ankvab, its leader, to flee. Protesters said they were frustrated with corruption. Mr Ankvab later denounced their action as a coup attempt. Russia has supported Abkhazian independence from Georgia since a 2008 war.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 186, published on May 28 2014)

Georgia’s TBC Bank plans IPO

MAY 27 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – TBC Bank is aiming to be the second Georgian company to list on the stock exchange in London. It named a price range for its shares at its proposed IPO at the end of June of between $13 and $16.

This is an important IPO for Georgia and the wider former Soviet Union. For Georgia, TBC Bank will be the first IPO since the end of Mikheil Saakashvili’s era as president. For the wider former Soviet Union, it will test investors’ appetite for buying into the region while the conflict in Ukraine appears to be worsening.

Rival Bank of Georgia floated on the London Stock Exchange in 2006 and is now part of the FTSE-250.

TBC Bank, valued at nearly $800m, aims to float around 50% of its stock in the IPO. It is the biggest bank in Georgia in terms of retail deposits, with a 33% share of the market.

The TBC floatation will also be a test of how investors view the Georgian economy. It has improved over the last year, partly because relations with Russia have improved, but there are still plenty of weaknesses. Inflation is still stubbornly low and direct foreign investment, so important, is taking some time to pick up again.

Still, with the South Caucasus’ status as a transit region for cargo and energy products between the Caspian Sea and Europe growing, Georgia has experienced an economic re-bound.

The TBC IPO at the end of June will be a good indication of how investors feel about the region.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 186, published on May 28 2014)

Anti gay protesters march in Georgia

May 17 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Georgian Orthodox groups rallied in Tbilisi against a new law designed to protect same-sex relationships. Media estimated that there were several hundred people at the rally, underlining the conservative nature of Georgian society. The Georgian Orthodox Church retains a lot of power in Georgia.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 185, published on May 21 2014)

PM unveils plan for new Black Sea port in Georgia

May 14 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – Georgia will start building a deep water port on its Black Sea coast to cope with an expected surge in cargo being transported across the South Caucasus and on to Europe.

Georgian PM Irakli Garibshvili appeared to slip in news of the planned construction, almost casually, during comments he made at a Georgia-France business forum.

“We expect that Georgia’s demand for transport and logistics will increase,” the Trend news agency quoted Mr Garibashvili as saying.

“Therefore, we have decided to construct a deep-sea port in the Black Sea (Anaklia), to better serve the rapidly growing business in transportation and warehousing sectors.”

There has been something of an infrastructure boom across the South Caucasus.

The Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline pumps oil from the Caspian Sea to Turkey, generating revenue for the transit countries and plans for more pipelines will also push up earnings.

What Mr Garibashvili was talking about though is physical cargo transported from the Caspian Sea to the Black Sea. Azerbaijan, Georgia and Turkey have combined to modernise the co-called Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway. This is predominantly a trade route used to transit goods. Although it doesn’t finish in Anaklia it will still benefit the port town just north of Poti.

Increased trade across the South Caucasus is set to give Georgian industry a much needed boost.

ENDS

(News report from Issue No. 185, published on May 21 2014)

Europe gives Georgia 30m euros

May 15 2014 (The Conway Bulletin) – The European Commission pledged to give 30m euros of financial aid to Georgia, media reported.European Council president, Herman Van Rompuy, made the declaration on a trip to Tbilisi. The EU and NATO have been trying to assure Georgia of its support since Russia’s de facto annexation of Crimea from Ukraine earlier this year.