Caucasus Archive

On Nov. 17, Georgian and Israeli officials signed an agreement to lift visa requirements for Georgian citizens traveling to Israel, reciprocating Georgia’s visa-free policy for Israelis in place since mid-2005. Although subject to approval from their respective legislatures, the deal represents a major diplomatic accomplishment for Tbilisi and a stunning turnaround in bilateral relations. As recently as a year ago, Georgia-Israel ties were at their modern nadir under Georgia’s now-opposition United National Movement (UNM). Despite a once-close relationship, the two countries rapidly fell out due to Georgian accusations over an arms purchase gone bad, Georgia’s seemingly retributive jailing of Israeli […]

On Oct. 27, voters in Georgia picked Giorgi Margvelashvili to replace outgoing President Mikheil Saakashvili, affirming the prominence of the Georgian Dream party, which ousted Saakashvili’s United National Movement in parliamentary elections last year. In an email interview, Cory Welt, associate director of the Institute for European, Russian and Eurasian Studies at the George Washington University and an adjunct fellow at the Center for American Progress, discussed the ramifications of the vote for Georgia’s democracy WPR: What does the successful presidential vote, in addition to last year’s parliamentary transfer of power, indicate about the strength of Georgian democracy? Cory Welt: […]