Louis XIV Alasania

Several members of the Georgian government slapped the door loudly. The country talk about the political crisis

In Georgia, a political crisis is growing. Following the arrest of several officials of the Ministry of Defense on charges of corruption , Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili dismissed the Minister of Defense Irakli Alasania , after which foreign ministers and state administration of European integration left posts. The resignation of the head of the Ministry of Defense is perceived by his associates as a blow to the pro -Western orientation of the country. However, the leaders of the ruling coalition "Georgian Dream" declare that they do not intend to change the course on integration in NATO and the EU.

The first symptoms of the advancing crisis appeared after the Georgian Prosecutor's Office arrested five high -ranking officials of the Ministry of Defense, accusing them of a waste of about $ 2.5 million. According to the investigation, the officials of the Ministry of Defense entered into a contract with the Silknet Internet company for the construction of a new communication line for the needs of the defense department obviously unprofitable for the state. Investigators claim that another company that participated in the competition offered much more favorable conditions, but the leadership of the Ministry of Defense preferred Silknet based on selfish motives.

Nevertheless, no one is accused of receiving bribes or so -called "kickbacks". The criminal case was instituted under the article “Wall of Wallows”, and the investigation had no questions to the Minister of Defense. But loud arrests were made at the moment when Irakli Alasania was in Europe, negotiating with the leadership of the Ministry of Defense of the Federal Republic of Germany and France. Returning to his homeland, he stated that he was convinced of the innocence of his employees.

Obviously, Alasania calculated the following steps of the prosecutor's office, because the contract with Silknet was concluded not only with his knowledge, but by his order: officials of the ministry could not afford to amate themselves in such an important issue. Having not achieved understanding from Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili, who all the time referred to the need for respect for the investigation, Irakli Alasania conducted a briefing at which he claimed that the prosecutor’s office “struck the European and Euro-Atlantic integration of Georgia” , trying to disrupt the country's entry into the NATO and the EU. “The political component is clearly traced here,” Alassania argued.

At the same time, accusing, in fact, the Prime Minister of political persecution and disruption of the integration of Georgia into NATO, the Minister of Defense did not resign. But a few hours later, Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili told reporters that he decided to dismiss the Minister of Defense "in connection with irresponsible statements."

Political scientist Georgy Khukhashvili believes that the reaction of Irakli Alasania to the "banal", in his opinion, the criminal case was not quite adequate:

- The task of the authorities is to separate legal issues from politics. Unfortunately, the department of Alassania on the very first day began politicization in general banal corruption. And the climax was the minister’s statement on the change in the country's development vector. There is nowhere to go further. This statement became fatal for his political career.

He repeated approximately what Louis XIV used to proclaim at one time: "The state is me"

Heraclia and his long-standing partner in the joint struggle against ex-president Saakashvili, film director George Haindrava do not understand:

- The statement of Alasania is absolutely incomprehensible. He repeated approximately what Louis XIV once proclaimed at one time: "The state is me." That is, according to Alasania, the pro -Western course, it turns out, is personified! Having questioned the preservation of the foreign policy, he did not substantiate his opinion.

Irakli Alasania is the leader of the Free Democrats party. This party, together with the "Republicans", is part of the Georgian Dream Coalition, which was founded by a billionaire and philanthropist Bidzin Ivanishvili in the fall of 2011. After the resignation of Alassania, the post was left by his friend and the closest ally, the State minister in European and Euro -Atlantic integration Alexy Petriashvili. “I am leaving because the dictatorship comes, and Georgia is turning off the pro -Western path,” Petriashvili said in an interview with Georgian television. And on Wednesday, the Minister of Foreign Affairs Maya Pangidze left her post. Moreover, four of her deputies resigned with her. According to unofficial data, several ambassadors, including Georgian Permanent in NATO, announced the resignation.

In fact, the ruling coalition "Georgian Dream" broke up, and in the coming days a new political configuration may develop in Georgia. The President of the Strategic and International Research Foundation Alexander Rondeli considers the collapse of the coalition to be inevitable and quite normal, since the Georgian Dream was created for the only purpose - to fight Mikhail Saakashvili:

- Coalitions in Georgia are created against a common enemy. In our case, against Mikhail Saakashvili. Then comes the moment when the coalition rests only, as they say, on an honest word. It was supposed to happen once. Moreover, in the "Georgian dream" there were previously cracks. That is, there is a normal process of the collapse of the coalition. But the form in which this happened is unpleasant and spoils the investment climate.

After the “free democrats” left the coalition, the Georgian Dream may miss the votes necessary to preserve the parliamentary majority. In a certain combination of circumstances, the government will be forced to raise the issue of trust, and it is not known whether the Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili will be enough to form a new cabinet of ministers. Then President Georgy Margvelashvili can intervene, and not at all on the side of the prime minister. The head of state stated, obviously hinting at the billionaire Bidzin Ivanishvili, who was considered an informal curator of the government: the Culuar government is unacceptable.

By universal opinion, the point of no return to the previous, relatively calm political situation in Georgia has already been passed and the country can expect new political shocks.