Georgian FM: Russian Actions "Dangerous"
RFE/RL/Georgia - A video grab of Georgian Foreign Minister Eka Tkeshelashvili (L) in an exclusive interview with RFE/RL’s Brian Whitemore (not pictured) at RFE/RL in Prague, 28Oct2008
October 29, 2008
(PRAGUE, Czech Republic -- October 29, 2008) In an exclusive interview with Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty's (RFE/RL) Georgian Service, Georgian Foreign Minister Eka Tkeshelashvili said Russia "does not show any intent of being constructive in bringing positive change" to the situation in South Ossetia and Abkhazia.
"On the contrary, Russia continues to be very dangerous with its actions on the ground," she said during a visit to RFE/RL Headquarters in Prague.
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Tkeshelashvili described the August conflict as a "losing game" for Russia, arguing that "the aims that Russia had for Georgia were not served at all" by the fighting. She noted that the Georgian government is still in place, the country has not re-oriented away from the West, and relations between Georgia and NATO and the EU are still strong.
She also discussed Georgia's hope of being offered a NATO Membership Action Plan in December when NATO's Defense Ministers meet and praised President Mikheil Saakashvili's recent choice of Georgia's Ambassador to Turkey, Grigol Mgaloblishvili, as his Prime Minister-designate.
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RFE/RL's Georgian Service began broadcasting in March 1953 as part of Radio Liberty broadcasting to the Soviet Union. Over the years, it has established a tradition for high professional standards for its news reporting and is widely regarded as the only objective and unbiased source of information in Georgia.