NEWS: Georgia News Digest 07-29-08

A service of the Georgian Foundation for Strategic and International Studies

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Archives and associated files at groups.google.com/group/genewsfiles (from February 2008) and groups.google.com/group/genews (before February 2008)

Foreign relations and conflicts
1. Abkhaz leadership receives invitation to conflict settlement meeting in Berlin
2. Sukhumi’s agreement to participate in Berlin meeting means softening of Moscow’s position
3. Abkhazia rejects Georgian calls for "international control" over Gali District
4. Secretary-General calls on all sides to preserve ceasefire regime
5. Secretary-General urges all sides to preserve Georgian Abkhaz ceasefire
6. U.S. has own unadvertised Georgian-Abkhaz settlement plan
7. US pushes for talks between leaders of Georgia and Abkhazia
8. Obama and (the Republic of) Georgia
9. Are Georgia and Russia heading for war?
10. Is the South Caucasus the “Achilles Heel” of Russia-US Relations?
11. 70% of Russians think Russian-Georgian relations are poor
12. New status for State Minister Iakobashvili stirs new controversy, expectations
13. Georgia gearing up for “immediate response”, Russia flexing muscles with “Caucasus Frontier 2008”
14. Georgia, US hold military exercises
15. Neither NATO nor any other structure will solve Georgia’s problems
16. Unlike Armenia and Azerbaijan, Georgia has no alternative to joining NATO
17. Georgia may find itself between Azerbaijan’s Scylla and Turkey’s Charybdis
18. Armenians are not lions, they are jackals, serving to stronger peoples
19. Abkhaz resident hurt in grenade explosion dies at Sukhumi hospital
20. Man dies in Gali blast
21. One killed in blast in Abkhazia
22. Four wounded in Georgia's separatist region
23. Abkhaz officials say 110,000 passports issued
24. Separatist official says 110,000 Abkhaz "passports" issued
25. Russian troops to leave Abkhazia
26. Work done, Russian military engineers leaving Abkhazia
27. Reconstruction on Sukhumi-Ochamchira railroad in Abkhazia over
28. Georgia's lab apes languish in post-Soviet limbo
29. Two more unsanctioned flights recorded over Georgian-S. Ossetian conflict zone
30. Who is carrying out explosions in Tskhinvali?
31. Tbilisi claims S. Ossetian military bar monitoring group from inspected area
Politics and government
32. Republican party admits ‘mistakes’
33. Cracks in unity among United Opposition members
34. Everyone has a weakness
35. Labour Party in "state of emergency" after member's arrest
36. Labourites’ leader may be charged for money laundering
37. Laborites work in contingency regime and prepared to become illegal immigrants
38. Labor Party ready to go underground
39. Ombudsman calls upon international organizations
40. Public Defender requests General Prosecutor’s Office to commence investigation
41. Economic Development Minister visits Kutaisi
42. PM Lado Gurgenidze resigns?
Business and economics
43. Weekly market watch
44. Open Sky deal between Switzerland and Georgia promises new opportunities
45. Krynica ready to host 18th Economic Forum
46. Government to subsidize 2008 grape harvest
47. Global food crisis approaches Georgia
48. Rich fruit harvest spoiled by embargo
49. Private hotels near dinosaurs
50. Gurulebi have a tea factory
51. Epic Elite logs fastest VLJ
Misc.
52. Batumi to host meeting of Black Sea countries’ coastguard experts
53. Armenian public and government’s reaction on Javakhk developments surprising
54. Georgian-based ethnic Armenian movement condemns Yerevan's policy
55. Land mine found in Gori with a letter attached
56. Anti-personnel mine found in Georgian town near South Ossetia
57. Georgian armed forces chief visits Lithuania
58. Patriarch of all Africa in Georgia
59. NGOs meet to tackle regional environmental concerns
60. Push to rebuild brings protest in Georgia’s capital
61. Georgia crowns new beauty queen
62. GPB will reduce its news coverage
63. GeeGeeing up
64. Catholic Iranian gets runaround from Georgian officials on refugee status, fears return to Iran
65. Georgia dismantles monument to Kakheti region residents killed in War II

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