A Brief History
The territory that the country of Georgia now occupies has seen human development since the Paleolithic period. Over the last few thousand years, the territory has been under the domain of Georgian, or Kartvelian, kingdoms and other regional empires. However, Georgia’s contemporary history began following the country’s absorption into the Russian Empire during the 19th century.
Following the Russian Revolution, Georgia became independent from the USSR and came to be known as the Democratic Republic of Georgia (DRG) in 1918. However, in 1921, the DRG was forcibly integrated into the Soviet Union and would not regain its independence again until 1991. Georgia had an influential role in Soviet history. For example, the USSR was governed by Georgian-born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili, better known as Joseph Stalin, from 1924 until his death in 1953.
The decade following Georgia’s independence, in 1991, was marked by significant political turmoil. Between 1995 and 2003, the country was led by President Eduard Shevardnadze. His eight-year rule as President was characterized by severe economic mismanagement and rampant institutional corruption. In response to Shevardnedze’s political failures, Georgians engaged in countrywide demonstrations demanding political transparency; these demonstrations were later termed the Rose Revolution. In the end, Shevardnadze vacated the presidency, and Mikheil Saakashvili was sworn in as President.
Saakashvili’s ascension to the presidency signaled that Georgia had chosen to resist Russian influence and fight corruption; however, Georgia’s position as a democratic state has become threatened in the last few months. After leaving office, Saakashvili moved to New York before ultimately moving to Ukraine, where he served as the Governor of Odessa, as well as other positions within the Ukrainian government. However, in 2018, he was tried and convicted in absentia for abuse of power. Saakashvili returned to Georgia in October 2021 and was subsequently arrested. After his arrest, Saakashvili went on a fifty-day hunger strike, which ended following his admittance to an intensive care ward after he fainted. Saakashvili asserts that his arrest and trial are purely political rather than based on any substantive issue. Regardless, the arrest of a former president does not bode well for democracy in Georgia.
Mikheil Saakashvili and George W. Bush—Image Courtesy of NATO
Background on Georgian Politics
Georgia’s capital is located in the central city of Tbilisi. Georgia’s government is a semi-presidential republic. Currently, the head of state is President Salome Zurabishvili, and the head of government is Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili. Unlike the United States, which has two chambers in its legislature, Georgia has a unicameral legislature: the Parliament of Georgia. In total, one hundred and fifty members are elected to represent the nearly five million people living in Georgia. One hundred and twenty members are elected through proportional representation, while the remaining thirty are elected through a single-member district plurality system; that is, a representative is elected to a parliamentary seat after reaching a majority vote. Presently, the political party Georgian Dream—Democratic Georgia forms the government with eighty-four seats. The United National Movement party, initially founded by Mikheil Saakashvili, sits on the opposition side with thirty seats.
Image courtesy of The World Factbook
Economy
Domestic Issues
Labor-intensive occupations drive the Georgian economy, with the two most important sectors being agricultural production and manufacturing. Due to its smaller population, Georgia’s workforce includes roughly 686,000 citizens. Despite relying on agriculture and manufacturing, the Georgian economy is transitioning towards a service and tourism-based economy. Between 2016 and 2017, the country’s GDP grew 5%, indicating positive economic development. However, Georgia still deals with significant unemployment, 11.8% by 2016 figures, and poverty, as nearly 20% of all Georgians lived below the poverty line in 2019.
International Issues
Georgia mainly exports raw materials and manufacturing products. The country’s primary exports are copper, iron alloys, cars, packaged medicine, and wine. Despite them having a tense interstate relationship, Russia is the most common destination of Georgian exports. In 2019, 12% of Georgian exports went to Russia, followed by 12% to Azerbaijan and 9% to Armenia.
Although Georgia derives 65% of its electricity from hydroelectric sources, according to 2017 statistics, it still relies heavily on natural gas imports. Turkey is Georgia’s primary import partner, accounting for 17% of Georgian imports, followed by 11% for China’s, and 9% for Russia’s. The United States is a minor trade partner and only accounts for 5% of Georgian imports.
Georgia’s geographic position on the border of Europe and Asia yields some economic advantages. The Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline and the South Caucasus gas pipeline allow Georgia to play a significant role in the movement of oil and natural gasses from Central Asia to the Mediterranean Sea. Additionally, the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railroad positions Georgia in the middle of the transcontinental movement of goods.
Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan Oil Pipeline—Image courtesy of Silk Road Studies
Territorial Issues
Although Georgia has made significant economic and political gains following their emancipation from the Soviet Union, this sovereignty is not without problems. Two regions of Georgia, Abkhazia and South Ossetia, are breakaway regions, and multiple wars of independence have been fought over them.
Abkhazia is an autonomous region in northwestern Georgia. Apart from Russia, the breakaway region is only recognized by five UN-recognized states. Between 1992 and 1993, Georgian forces fought against Abkhaz separatists in a thirteen-month war. A ceasefire subsequently ended the conflict, but the political ramifications remain. Abkhazia eventually declared its independence in 1999.
South Ossetia is a breakaway state in North-Central Georgia, which makes up the southern half of the traditional homeland of the Ossetian people. The Russian republic of North Ossetia-Alania borders it to the north. Like Abkhazia, South Ossetia receives minimal recognition from the international community, outside of a few states. Russia recognizes South Ossetia and maintains a military presence in the region. In 2008, President George W. Bush campaigned for Georgia’s membership to the Membership Action Plan, designed to set Georgia on the track for NATO membership. In response, Russian President Vladimir Putin argued that any attempt to enlarge NATO was a national security threat and began preparing for an invasion. The Russo-Georgian war then took place once Russia invaded Georgia, where Georgian and Russian soldiers, as well as Russian-backed Ossetian separatists, fought against each other. This led to Russia occupying South Ossetia in an attempt to prevent Georgian ascension into NATO.
Cultural Dynamics
Many political dynamics serve as catalysts for conflict between Georgia, Abkhazia, and South Ossetia; the different groups that live in the region being one of them. During the Soviet era, Abkhazia was populated by a mix of Abkhazians, Georgians, Russians, and Armenians; however, now the region is predominantly Abkhazian. Georgians are an isolated ethnolinguistic group, whereas Ossetians are an Eastern Iranian ethnolinguistic group, and Abkhazians are a Northwest Caucasian ethnolinguistic group. These groups, despite living together as part of the Soviet Union and being native to the Caucasus, are not related, and their ethnolinguistic differences became salient once the Union collapsed.
Georgian-American Relations
The United States and Georgia officially established diplomatic relations in 1992. Given the economic and political disparities between the two countries, Georgia certainly relies more on the United States. The United States has committed significant amounts of aid to Georgia, in order to advance democratic and economic growth within the country. However, the United States does rely on Georgia’s geographic position to advance its “competition” with Russia.
Multiple attempts to integrate Georgia into NATO have occurred, but none have been successful, especially after Russia’s 2008 invasion, whose likely goal was to prevent Georgian ascension into NATO. Georgia, although it lacks official membership, is a member state in the Partnership for Peace, which aims to build trust between NATO members and regional non-members.
Georgian and American soldiers in a joint training exercise, 2008—Image courtesy of NBC News
