THE OPEN LETTER OF MIKHEIL KAVELASHVILI TO MME. KELLY DEGNAN

Mme. Ambassador!

As you have stated a couple of days ago, the persons urging that America strives to start a war in Georgia echo the insidious narrative of the Federal Security Service (FSB).

Naturally, we would gladly agree with you if not for the past and present ties of these people who try to spark and realize the war idea in Georgia from the very moment of the Russian military aggression in Ukraine. Let us remind you that starting on February 24 and within a couple of weeks after the war started in Ukraine, the active campaign was on intensive progress in Georgia about the provision of Ukraine with maximal support. Various forces were striving to engage Georgia in the war and I, accompanied by two members of the team, made the decision to leave the Party, first of all, to prevent the threat from the country.

Within this campaign, certain persons were actively demanding Georgia join the sanctions, which naturally would double the risks of the war in our country. We also are aware of the fact that various forces in Georgia were actively demanding to dispatch the plane full of Georgian volunteers to Ukraine, which would mean the direct engagement of Georgia in the military conflict.

Mme. Ambassador, you would thus protect the image of America by publicly dissociating with these provocations triggered by the National Movement. Unfortunately, I cannot recall any of your public statements regarding this issue. Moreover, you even publicly supported the demand to join the sanctions.

Besides, later, your main pillar in Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy recalled the Ambassador of Ukraine from Georgia due to this very refusal of Georgia to join the sanctions and send the volunteers. The calculations were simple: the recall of the Ambassador by V. Zelenskyy who was in his zenith of popularity should spark the turmoil in the Georgian society and trigger the revolutionary attitude. However, the revolt of society lasted only 2-3 hours and the plan failed. It’s appalling that you neither dissociated with this absolutely abstruse decision of “pro-American” Zelenskyy, which softly speaking, was an expression of dissatisfaction entailed with the choice of Georgia not to get dragged into the war.

Later, we heard the statements by other “pro-American” Ukrainian politicians – Podolyak, Arestovych, Goncharenko, Danilov, Arakhamia et.al. openly calling Georgia to get engaged in the war and attack Abkhazia and Tskhinvali. Unfortunately, you have never responded to these statements either.

As to the rhetoric of Georgian “pro-Americans”, I would like to first of all recall the leader of the American NGOs in Georgia – Eka Gigauri, who has openly stated that “Russia loses the war in Ukraine, lacks the resources and thus, will fail to launch the military actions in all directions; hence, we shall do our best to use this window of opportunity”.

When a person like Eka Gigauri – almost declared as a main pro-American in Georgia – openly calls Georgia to war, you can imagine the emotions in Georgian society.

Nino Lomjaria was particularly active in the political protest rallies on Rustaveli Avenue and called for the mobilization of “more aid” to Ukraine; she is universally famous for being appointed as an Ombudsman by actively backed by the Embassy. At the rallies, she protested the statement of I. Garibashvili on the refusal of Georgia to join the sanctions stating that “she would rather get through the bombarding than hear this statement”. When N. Lomjaria openly expresses her preference for bombarding and destruction rather than the refusal to join the sanctions, Georgian people logically come to think that it is exactly your priority. Hence, it would be preferable for you to dissociate with this statement by Lomjaria, though, you still did not express your position. On the contrary, as you might remember, N. Lomjaria remains to be your absolute favorite person and you often call on our Government to adhere to her offers.

The same is for Giorgi Margvelashvili, David Usupashvili, Tamar Chergoleishvili, Misha Mshvildadze and others, the war rhetoric of which is totally associated with you for our society. And you, not dissociating with these people lead the Georgian society to think that you make these Georgian “pro-American” persons speak up. So, the narrative that America wants Georgia to get engaged in the war can be found not in the Russian FSS textbooks but in the statements affiliated to or funded by you.

Why the NGOs, parties and TV companies funded and approved by you facilitate the enhancement of the FSS narrative in Georgia is totally abstruse to me. And the current rallies organized by the same persons designated with war rhetoric, calling on to join the sanctions and send the volunteers to Ukraine are in direct connection with all these facts; and by the way, these are the same people, organizing the protest rallies in February and March with the same demands; these are the people trained by the American expert Peter Ackerman, who is notorious for close connections with the American official structures. The same people, nested in NGOs, who enjoy the solid funds from you, were rallying on Rustaveli Avenue a couple of days ago demanding the resignation of the Government according to the Bakuriani scenario. In this extremely complicated geopolitical situation and against the background of the war in Ukraine, the reason why someone can plot the coup d’etat is crystal clear: all the roads lead to the open calls of February and March – war.

I cannot understand why you do not dissociate with the request of these people about the resignation of the Government and appointment of the technical authorities you use to fund; not to mention that you hold effective leverage on the behavior of these people. As known, the payer orders the music and when you abstain from dissociating from the request of so-called technical authorities, you thus make people logically think that you at least support this request or even it was you who generated this idea. Hence, I believe it is urgent for you to publicly dissociate with this request to prevent the Georgian people from negatively estimating America.

It is also confusing to see the artificial forcing of the theme of candidacy. As known, no material privileges are attached to the status of candidacy and hence, Georgia loses nothing by not receiving this status in three or six months. It means that if we still do receive the status, we get nothing tangible but if we do not – then the revolution will once again be posed to the country. The forcing of the candidacy in this situation may be based on the goal to create a revolutionary background. Though, unfortunately, I see you actively engaged in the forcing campaign that may entail more questions in society.

It’s inadmissible to let people think that you want the people back in the authority who will without hesitation drag Georgia into the war. Also, let me recall that unfortunately, you have not either dissociated with the statement of a preceding US Ambassador, William Courtney who has called Bidzina Ivanishvili – a person estimated by you once as a philanthropist – an oligarch without the grounds and reiterated the message on de-oligarchization authored by the National Movement.

The “Georgian Dream” abstains from asking these questions, though I, a Member of Parliament and an average citizen of my country, consider myself obliged to ask you these questions. I hope to hear the public answers to my questions, which is necessary for preventing the grave prejudice against the image of America in Georgia. If the Georgian people believe that America strives for the coup d’etat and return of the “war party” to the authority, which successfully has been dragging the country into the war and other disasters, believe me, the “American idea” will be totally devaluated in Georgia and no “Russian soft forces” can undermine the reputation of America in Georgia as your statements and silence that may be perceived by the Georgian people as an attempt to bring the National Movement back to the authority.