Main aspects of Moldovan-Georgian relations

Abstract

            Diplomatic relations between Moldova and Georgia were established on June 25, 1992[1]. However, the very first visit in the history of relations between our countries took place several years later, on November 28-29, 1997. It was the visit of the second President of Moldova, P. Lucinschi, to Georgia. During this visit, the Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation between our countries, which was fundamental for all subsequent Moldovan-Georgian relations, as well as the Treaty on the Promotion and  Mutual Protection of Investments, the Treaty on Free Trade and a number of others, was signed. The next visit was made by President M. Saakashvili to Moldova. It took place on March 2-3, 2005 and had a completely different meaning. The then President of Moldova, communist V.Voronin, who declared his European integration aspirations in those years, needed the support of the West on the eve of the parliamentary elections scheduled for March 6, 2005, in order to frustrate the aspirations of the Russian Federation to organize their non-recognition, and then mass riots with the aim of overthrowing. Such help was given to him. Chisinau was then visited by several pro-Western heads of state at once (including the President of Ukraine of those years, V. Yushchenko). All three countries agreed to join forces in the fight against separatism and political and economic blackmail by the Russian Federation.. On November 24, 2010, M. Saakashvili again visited Moldova before the parliamentary elections, this time to help the pro-European bloc of the AEI, although he assured in an interview that he had not come for this. For the development of Moldovan-Georgian relations and for assistance in eliminating the consequences of a serious flood that then befell Moldova (Georgia provided funds for the construction of housing for the victims), M. Saakashvili was awarded the highest order of Moldova - the Order of the Republic.[6]. The third visit of the head of the Georgian state to Moldova was also made by M. Saakashvili (July 11-12, 2013). He then arrived in Chisinau for the Eastern Partnership summit. In the city, he was met by ardent admirers of the “Russian world”, who hated and feared Saakashvili for his attempt to destroy the South Ossetian separatist terrorist regime in August 2008 (so that it would not become an example for our authorities in relation to the Transnistrian separatists), and tried to boo him. During this visit, M. Saakashvili emphasized that he arrived in Moldova in order to expand cooperation in the matter of European integration, as well as to assist in the development of justice reform in our country.The foundations of Moldovan-Georgian cooperation in this area were laid down by the Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation, signed on November 28, 1997, which has already been discussed above. However, there have been no significant changes in this area for two decades. Some changes began only as a result of the visit of Prime Minister P. Filip (November 29, 2017) to Georgia. Thanks to the discussions held with his Georgian colleague G. Kvirikashvili, an agreement was reached on holding the Days of Moldova in Georgia, and vice versa, the Days of Georgia in Moldova.. At the same time, the Cooperation Program between the ministries of culture of both countries was signed. It envisaged the establishment of a dialogue between the musical, theatrical and other cultural and art institutions of Moldova and Georgia, the participation of representatives of both parties in competitions, festivals, conferences, symposiums, and seminars. Direct cooperation was planned between the National Libraries of the two countries, through the organization of book exhibitions and information exchange, the development of bilateral cooperation in the field of restoration of historical and cultural monuments, the promotion of cooperation between film organizations and film production associations, the support of cooperation between small and medium-sized cultural and creative institutions etc., as well as mutual support of compatriots living in our countries, holding their cultural events on a mutually beneficial basis. Thus, it should be concluded that the Moldovan-Georgian cooperation, which essentially began in the late 1990s, has since strengthened and began to develop in an upward direction. If the first visits laid the foundation for relations for the future, then, since 2005, they moved into a new phase - political support for the Moldovan leadership and the development of socio-economic cooperation. The third stage begins in 2014 and continues to this day, it is characterized by fairly close cooperation between the parties. Cooperation in the trade and economic sphere is gradually developing, where the milestone years were 2005 and 2017, which gave a new impetus to Moldovan-Georgian relations in this area. Relations between the parties in the field of European integration began in 2014 with cooperation within the Eastern Partnership to jointly resolve issues related to the implementation of the terms of the Associated Membership Agreement in the EU. In July 2021, they developed into a new phase - as part of the now narrower “associated trio”, and since May 2022 they continue as between states seeking EU membership, in which Moldova, which has received the status of a candidate member, is the leader today. EU. In the field of defense, relations are based on the Cooperation Agreement between the Defense Ministries of both countries, and in this area, on the contrary, Moldova is switching to NATO standards under the auspices of the Georgian side. The agreements signed in November 2017, which determined various forms of their further development, became the key for the cultural and humanitarian relations of the parties.