Tbilisi's strategic move: Betting on Azerbaijan in defiance of West Georgian expert on Caliber.Az

We are strong in unity – the meeting of the Azerbaijani and Georgian leaders this week once again proved that there is a strong partnership in the region with a clearly verified political and economic line. Ready to face any challenge from outside. Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili's visit to Azerbaijan and the two leaders' remarks at a joint press conference also showed that Baku and Tbilisi understand and appreciate their cooperation benefits and the advantages of the geopolitical location of the two countries, which should be used for the region's economic development. Most importantly, the South Caucasus is in safe hands, even with an outsider such as Armenia, which intends to remain in a kind of geopolitical cocoon - with communications blocked and isolated from promising projects and unique economic opportunities.

However, the current meeting of the leaders of the two countries was not only of a regional nature. The consolidation of economic and political agreements and the road map of Baku and Tbilisi at this stage is in no small measure a response to all those who have decided to test the South Caucasus stability. This is especially important now for Tbilisi in its difficult dialogue with the West.

Before the leaders of the current Georgian government started to pursue a more active policy in the region, the Georgian political elite was dominated by completely different views and trends. This fact was stressed by Archil Sikharulidze, a Georgian international expert and the founder of the SIKHA Foundation research centre, in a conversation with Caliber.Az. According to him, the main priority for those politicians was the "Western front" and the post-soviet space, the South Caucasus - a reality they tried to get away from.

“In other words, these people do not call Georgia part of the South Caucasus, but the Black Sea region - which already speaks for itself. They believed that Azerbaijan and Armenia were Türkiye- and Russia-oriented countries, respectively, and that Georgia should not hope for any advantages here, so it should go to the West, its own, 'Western way'.

However, in the last few years, especially after Azerbaijan's victory in the 44-day war, the Georgian Dream party in power, led by Irakli Garibashvili, has begun to pursue a noticeably more active policy in the region. Even if we track only by statistics, there is a significantly increased number of visits to neighbouring Azerbaijan, and this is not for nothing. There was an awareness that Georgia should correlate its policy with objective reality, with the geopolitical space where it is and remains. And this means cooperation with the closest neighbours in the region," the Georgian political scientist stressed.

One of the most important countries for Tbilisi, according to Sikharulidze, is Azerbaijan.
"There are many advantages here because Azerbaijan has resources, projects, and against the background of Russia's war in Ukraine, it is perceived by Europe as a factor replacing Russia in the energy resources. And Georgia wants to be involved in the transit projects that it is implementing because it has always perceived its territory as a kind of transit corridor. So, the Baku-Tbilisi duo should be actively promoted," the political scientist stressed.

At the same time, he believes that the domestic politics aspect must be taken into account, for example, the fact that the “Georgian Dream” (party) has achieved a record result - it was able to retain the majority already in the third parliamentary elections.

"It is worth considering," he notes, "and the fact that now certain centres of influence in the United States and the EU are conducting a campaign aimed at bringing to power in Georgia a political force more loyal than the Georgian Dream. The ruling party itself realized that there was a certain struggle going on in the West against it, and decided to rely on internal resources, on the interests and needs of the real electorate, and not get carried away with Western voyages and make loud speeches. After all, she is still endlessly reproached for something in the West and even imposed sanctions. So, it's time to take off the rose-coloured glasses".

The Georgian expert stresses that in this difficult situation, Irakli Garibashvili has made the right decision - to go to Azerbaijan, which is now an important energy partner for the European Union. According to Sikharulidze, with his visit he showed "that Georgia will not collapse, it will not go anywhere; it has friends - that is, above all Azerbaijan. And also Türkiye and other regional forces.

"This way, Garibashvili made it clear to the West that Georgia intends to increase cooperation with Azerbaijan. And I think that Baku would not mind such cooperation with a friendly neighbour. In fact, Azerbaijan with its strategic support strengthens Tbilisi's position in the region and the world. As a good friend and partner," Sikharulidze concluded.