[A-List] Georgia: pending civil war?

["Michael Keaney" <michael.keaney@xxxxxx>]

Georgia edges close to civil war

Nick Paton Walsh in Moscow
Monday March 15, 2004
The Guardian

Georgia inched towards civil war last night when armed troops prevented
President Mikhail Saakashvili entering a restive autonomous republic in the
west.

In turn he threatened to "punish" Adjara with a partial economic blockade,
blocking its oil port and freezing bank accounts linked to its leaders.

"This is an attempt to stage an armed revolt against Georgia," Mr
Saakashvili said. "Georgia is under a real threat of disintegrating and
falling apart.

He was forced to regroup at a nearby town after being turned away at the
border.

The autonomous republic of Adjara, on Georgia's western coast, is ruled by
the feudal regime of Aslan Abashidze.

Mr Saakashvili has made threatening remarks towards Mr Abashidze's regime.

Last week Mr Abashidze said a Georgian military convoy was en route to
Adjara to enact another "rose revolution" in the province. He immediately
flew to Moscow for talks.

Yesterday Mr Saakashvili increased the tension when he tried to lead a
convoy of senior figures into the Adjaran capital, Batumi, to campaign for
the parliamentary elections on March 28. Armed troops stopped the convoy,
and after brief talks Mr Saakashvili led the convoy to nearby Poti.

There he said he would give the Adjaran authorities time "to think matters
over and discontinue confrontational activities", Interfax reported.

"We will do our best to resolve the situation peacefully but we do not
propose to retreat. We will not allow Georgia to be splintered into small
pieces. The country will not be a hostage to feudal lords."

His foreign minister, Georgy Baramidze, told Associated Press that the goal
was to "restore the central government's authority" over Adjara. He said
that the region's airspace had been closed.

Mr Saakashvili put the military on alert and called an emergency cabinet
meeting.

The two men were reported to have spoken later in the day, when Mr Abashidze
alleged that Mr Saakashvili had threatened to shoot down his plane.

The Russian foreign ministry spokesman, Alexander Yakovenko, told Interfax:
"In the event of a crisis, all responsibility for it would lie with the
Georgian leadership."