NEWS: Georgia News Digest 05-28-08

A service of the Georgian Foundation for Strategic and International Studies

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Politics and election
1. President of Georgia received parade dedicated to the Independence Day of Georgia
2. Joint press conference: Mikheil Saakashvili and the President of Poland Lekh Kachinski
3. What are friends for?
4. EU ministerial hails parliamentary polls
5. Where is Lado Gurgenidze going?
6. Ruling party says to protect its votes ‘by all means’
7. Observers haunted with an axe and weapon
8. Opposition announces plans for "alternative" parliament
9. Opposition rallies on Independence Day
10. PM comments on opposition’s protest
11. Party quits opposition coalition
12. Dimitri Lortkipanidze left Zourabichvili’s party
13. Republican MP-elect splits with party, says he will sit in parliament
14. Georgian president wins big, but loses bigger, in parliamentary vote
15. Elections in shadow of total vote rigging
16. Why does Saakashvili remain popular?
17. Georgia: Before and after
18. United opposition vs. head of Georgian Public Broadcasting
19. The opposition leaders and the members of the Public Broadcasting supervisory board held the meeting
20. Levan Kubaneishvili claims that rally of United Opposition on 27 May was pressure on the Public Broadcasting
21. Republicans say resignation of Public TV Board chair inexpedient
22. Erekle Tripolsky has resigned
Georgia-Russia relations and conflicts
23. How new Russian President could start Perestroika with friendly trips to neighboring countries [excerpt]
24. Saakashvili urges Russia to overcome deadlock
25. President Saakashvili’s remarks at National Security Council Session
26. Report of UNOMIG on the incident of 20 April involving the downing of a Georgian UAV over the zone of conflict
27. U.N. blames Russia for downed drone
28. UN mission confirms Georgian, rejects Russian version of air clash
29. UN says Russia shot down Georgian drone, which shouldn't have been over Abkhazia
30. Russian fighter shot down spy drone, says UN
31. Tensions rise as UN says Russian air force downed Georgian drone
32. Russian fighter shot down spy drone, says UN
33. Tbilisi demands apology from Moscow for incident in Georgian sky
34. Georgia demands Russian apology over spy plane
35. Georgia demands apology from Moscow over drone attack
36. Georgia wants compensation, apologies for drone downing
37. US welcomes Georgian self-control in drone incident
38. Moscow hopes for truth in Georgian spy plane row shot in Abkhazia
39. Russia says UN's Georgia spy plane probe unreliable
40. Russian MPs admit involvement of Russia in 20 April incident
41. Kovalenko handed over protest note
42. Russia to make special statement on UNOMIG report
43. Russian ambassador to Georgia doubts UAV evidence, not UN conclusions
44. Russian experts should be allowed to study Georgian UAV data
45. Lavrov doubts evidence Russian jet downed Georgian spy plane
46. "Ultimate cause" of Abkhazia attack needs disclosing
47. Shamba discontent with UNOMIG report
48. Abkhazia assumes responsibility for downing Georgian drone
49. Time to bury UN-led format
50. Russian MP visit Sokhumi
51. FM: Russia should become part of solution
52. Georgia may use UN findings to change peacekeeping format – official
53. Solana to visit Georgia to study situation on the spot
54. Khurcha incident: Staged or terrorist act?
55. Russian envoy pessimistic over prospects for Georgian-Ossetian settlement talks
56. Fire opened in Tskhinvali Region
Misc.
57. The government approved funding of extra four projects under the program of cheap credits
58. Fitch rates Bank of Georgia at B+
59. Cabinet approves the list of successful bidders
60. Georgia's average GDP growth for 2009-2012 at around 9%
61. Construction to start on Turkish section of Baku–Tbilisi–Kars railway
62. Turkey in between: Syria-Israel & Georgia-Russia
63. Mikheil Saakashvili attended the church service in Sameba Cathedral
64. Culture Minister hosts officials from Norway
65. Rustavi City Assembly elects new mayor
66. We give our hands to everyone
67. Georgia to name its first APC after President Mikheil Saakashvili

Jonathan Kulick, Ph.D., Director of Studies, Georgian Foundation for Strategic and International Studies, 3a Chitadze, Tbilisi 0108, Georgia (Republic), jonathan.kulick@gfsis.org, office: +995 32 47 35 55, mobile: +995 95 33 33 40, USA voicemail: 310.928.6814