The News in Brief
Thursday, February 7
Gas prices will decrease by 10% - Kakhi Kaladze
Gas prices will decrease by 10 %, Energy Minister Kakhi Kaladze said on Maestro TV.
According to him, the Georgian government is fulfilling its promises with regard to taxes.
"Gas prices have decreased by 3.54 tetris. We will try for a further decrease after we study in detail if there is such a possibility," Kaladze said. According to him, the gas price was reduced at the expense of profits from the companies. "The gas price will decrease by 10%, but this is not a final result," he said. According to him, the energy ministry is interested in finding alternative energy sources. (IPN)
Georgian, Russian Diplomats to Meet on March 1
Georgian Prime Minister’s special representative for relations with Russia, Zurab Abashidze will meet Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin on March 1.
According to Abashidze the meeting will be held in Europe, but the exact venue has yet to be agreed upon.
It will be the second meeting between the two diplomats after Georgia’s new government announced about its intention to mend ties with Russia.
Abashidze and Karasin met in Switzerland in December in what were the first direct talks between the diplomats from the two countries since the August 2008 War. (Civil.Ge)
Irakli Gharibashvli – Crime has not increased
There have not been any mistakes in our department, Minister of Internal Affairs of Georgia Irakli Gharibashili said on Rustavi 2, while summarizing the party's first 100 days of work.
He said there were a number of changes: the constitutional security and special operative departments have been abolished; reform and anti-corruption agencies were set up. Gharibashvili highlighted the ethic code and strategy of developing the ministry and thanked the U.S. for the assistance in work on the strategy. The minister said the statistics show that crime has not increased and the situation is under control. (IPN)
Tskhinvali responds to Ivanishvili’s statement
Leningor no longer needs Georgia’s gas supply, Murat Jioev, South Ossetia’s de-facto president’s representative for post-conflict regulation issues, said in response to the Georgian PM’s statement. Since the 2008 war, the S. Ossetian government has repeatedly addressed the Georgian government to provide gas to Leningor, given the fact that a significant part of the city’s population consists of Georgian-speaking residents, Jioev said. According to him, despite the four-year requests by the OSCE and international organizations, the Georgian side did not agree on it. He said the government has now established transport communication with Leningor and gas supply issues are now being solved. As for the rest of South Ossetia, it has been supplied with gas by Russia since 2009, Jioev said. Bidzina Ivanishvili said at a press conference yesterday that the government is trying to provide South Ossetia with gas. (IPN)
Abkhazian President meets with the Resident UNDP Representative in Georgia
Abkhazian de-facto President Alexander Ankvabi met with the local UNDP representative in Georgia Jamie McGoldrick. The reconstruction of Enguri Bridge was discussed at the meeting, the Abkhazian media reports. According to McGoldrick, the reconstruction of the bridge was suspended because of Georgian political developments and the weather. He said restoration of the bridge is still on the agenda. The sides agreed to hold further talks on the issue in the future. (IPN)
Margvelashvili confirms he was offered position of vice PM
Minister of Education of Georgia Giorgi Margvelashvili has confirmed that he was offered the position of the vice prime minister, which is vacant since the prime minister dismissed defense minister Irakli Alasania from this position. Margvelashvili says the new position is a new responsibility and additional obligations will be laid on him. The minister hopes that the new position will not obstruct his work as the minister of education and he will succeed in combining the two jobs effectively. The prime minister of Georgia announced his decision to appoint Margvelashvili as the vice prime minister at a press conference Monday, though he did not specify the date of the appointment and the spheres that would be under his supervision. (Rustavi 2)
Georgia to host the Eastern Partnership – EuroNest Parliamentary Assembly
Georgia will host the Eastern Partnership – EuroNest Parliamentary Assembly for the first time. The session of the Committee of Political Affairs, Human Rights and Democracy will be held on 14 February.
According to the Parliamentary Committee on European Integration, European MPs will discuss the progress of their relationship, cooperation and action plans. The subject of discussion will be: "Regional Security Challenges in Eastern European Partner Countries." Parliament Speaker Davit Usupashvili will deliver a speech at the meeting.
The European Parliament delegation will meet the president and the prime minister during its visit to Georgia. (IPN)
Gas prices will decrease by 10 %, Energy Minister Kakhi Kaladze said on Maestro TV.
According to him, the Georgian government is fulfilling its promises with regard to taxes.
"Gas prices have decreased by 3.54 tetris. We will try for a further decrease after we study in detail if there is such a possibility," Kaladze said. According to him, the gas price was reduced at the expense of profits from the companies. "The gas price will decrease by 10%, but this is not a final result," he said. According to him, the energy ministry is interested in finding alternative energy sources. (IPN)
Georgian, Russian Diplomats to Meet on March 1
Georgian Prime Minister’s special representative for relations with Russia, Zurab Abashidze will meet Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Grigory Karasin on March 1.
According to Abashidze the meeting will be held in Europe, but the exact venue has yet to be agreed upon.
It will be the second meeting between the two diplomats after Georgia’s new government announced about its intention to mend ties with Russia.
Abashidze and Karasin met in Switzerland in December in what were the first direct talks between the diplomats from the two countries since the August 2008 War. (Civil.Ge)
Irakli Gharibashvli – Crime has not increased
There have not been any mistakes in our department, Minister of Internal Affairs of Georgia Irakli Gharibashili said on Rustavi 2, while summarizing the party's first 100 days of work.
He said there were a number of changes: the constitutional security and special operative departments have been abolished; reform and anti-corruption agencies were set up. Gharibashvili highlighted the ethic code and strategy of developing the ministry and thanked the U.S. for the assistance in work on the strategy. The minister said the statistics show that crime has not increased and the situation is under control. (IPN)
Tskhinvali responds to Ivanishvili’s statement
Leningor no longer needs Georgia’s gas supply, Murat Jioev, South Ossetia’s de-facto president’s representative for post-conflict regulation issues, said in response to the Georgian PM’s statement. Since the 2008 war, the S. Ossetian government has repeatedly addressed the Georgian government to provide gas to Leningor, given the fact that a significant part of the city’s population consists of Georgian-speaking residents, Jioev said. According to him, despite the four-year requests by the OSCE and international organizations, the Georgian side did not agree on it. He said the government has now established transport communication with Leningor and gas supply issues are now being solved. As for the rest of South Ossetia, it has been supplied with gas by Russia since 2009, Jioev said. Bidzina Ivanishvili said at a press conference yesterday that the government is trying to provide South Ossetia with gas. (IPN)
Abkhazian President meets with the Resident UNDP Representative in Georgia
Abkhazian de-facto President Alexander Ankvabi met with the local UNDP representative in Georgia Jamie McGoldrick. The reconstruction of Enguri Bridge was discussed at the meeting, the Abkhazian media reports. According to McGoldrick, the reconstruction of the bridge was suspended because of Georgian political developments and the weather. He said restoration of the bridge is still on the agenda. The sides agreed to hold further talks on the issue in the future. (IPN)
Margvelashvili confirms he was offered position of vice PM
Minister of Education of Georgia Giorgi Margvelashvili has confirmed that he was offered the position of the vice prime minister, which is vacant since the prime minister dismissed defense minister Irakli Alasania from this position. Margvelashvili says the new position is a new responsibility and additional obligations will be laid on him. The minister hopes that the new position will not obstruct his work as the minister of education and he will succeed in combining the two jobs effectively. The prime minister of Georgia announced his decision to appoint Margvelashvili as the vice prime minister at a press conference Monday, though he did not specify the date of the appointment and the spheres that would be under his supervision. (Rustavi 2)
Georgia to host the Eastern Partnership – EuroNest Parliamentary Assembly
Georgia will host the Eastern Partnership – EuroNest Parliamentary Assembly for the first time. The session of the Committee of Political Affairs, Human Rights and Democracy will be held on 14 February.
According to the Parliamentary Committee on European Integration, European MPs will discuss the progress of their relationship, cooperation and action plans. The subject of discussion will be: "Regional Security Challenges in Eastern European Partner Countries." Parliament Speaker Davit Usupashvili will deliver a speech at the meeting.
The European Parliament delegation will meet the president and the prime minister during its visit to Georgia. (IPN)