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Guest Column
For Georgia, Ukraine’s near neighbor, the war feels very personal | Column
Still, Georgia, at this critical juncture, has two important reasons for optimism.
 
Refugees wait in a queue, after fleeing the war from neighboring Ukraine at the border crossing in Medyka, southeastern Poland, on Tuesday, March 29, 2022. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits)
Refugees wait in a queue, after fleeing the war from neighboring Ukraine at the border crossing in Medyka, southeastern Poland, on Tuesday, March 29, 2022. (AP Photo/Sergei Grits) [ SERGEI GRITS | AP ]
Published March 31, 2022

Ukraine is not the only nation whose borders have been breached by Russia’s military. Vladimir Putin’s troops invaded the Republic of Georgia in 2008. As a result, for my neighbors in Tbilisi, Georgia, my home for the past two months as I participate in the Fulbright U.S. Scholar program, Ukraine’s struggles feel very personal.

Evangeline Linkous [ Provided ]

The Russo-Georgian War took place just six months after NATO allies agreed that Georgia and Ukraine would be welcomed as members, recognizing the enormous strides made in both nations as they created democratic systems of governance after decades of Soviet rule. Twenty percent of Georgia’s territory was occupied by Russia; the major cities of Tbilisi and Gori were bombed; more than a thousand died; an estimated 138,000 people were displaced, and the economy was left in turmoil just as Georgia was on the brink of hard-earned political stability.

In 2012, on the heels of this devastation, the Georgian Dream party rose to power, founded by billionaire Boris Ivanishvili (much of whose wealth was made in Russia). The official party platform calls for NATO and EU integration (supported by more than 80 percent of Georgians). However, watchdog groups warn of democratic backsliding, including human rights abuses, election rigging, and media control — so much so that the U.S. threatened sanctions against Georgia last year.

From the vantage point of Georgia, it is evident how the war in Ukraine may play out. If Putin is allowed to gain further footholds, the region will be stuck in vicious cycles of shadow governments and economic instability. Georgians know this: their solidarity with Ukraine is made evident in the huge crowds assembling daily on Tbilisi’s Rustaveli Avenue.

It was inevitable, then, that, when Georgia’s prime minister announced that he would not support sanctions against Russia, the Georgian people recognized that they were at an historical crossroads. The choice — continued progress toward a democratic future or further subjugation to Russian political influence and military incursion — was clear. On March 2, Georgians gathering to support Ukraine added domestic policy to their agenda, demanding stronger support for Ukraine and progress toward EU membership.

That night, for the first time during my stay here, I could feel the urgency of Georgia’s situation. I texted with a brilliant, young Georgian woman whose job at an international organization gives her socio-economic options not available to the average Georgian. As she joined the protests, she wrote: “It might get ugly. Might die in an hour. I’m ready for everything because I really don’t want to live in Russia.”

Georgia, at this critical juncture, has two important reasons for optimism. One is Georgia’s President Salome Zourabichvili, who like, Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Ukraine, is calmly leading the nation toward hope. Zourabichvili comes from a long line of Georgian political and cultural leaders. Her posture and politics in the last few days are a sharp divergence from the obsequious support for Russia exhibited by some government leaders following the initial outbreak of war. Her stance culminated in Georgia’s application to the EU on March 3.

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The second positive trend is the renewed interest from the West that Georgia — and its strivings toward European integration in the face of Russian occupation — may finally receive. Russia’s expansionist intentions are now clear. Ukraine and Georgia must be welcomed in their efforts to join the EU. Anything less will facilitate Russia’s continued efforts to destabilize the region.

In 1946, with the atrocities of World War II still fresh, the Fulbright program was created to foster cultural exchanges and humanize international relations. Thanks to Fulbright, Georgia for me is the bright-eyed 19-year-old woman who works at my corner bakery. She was born post-independence but has little faith in a future with freedom and opportunity. The world cannot let her wait any longer, nor can it let Ukraine and Georgia wait any longer.

Reminiscent of the brave Ukrainian woman who brought sunflower seeds to Russian occupiers, Georgian lore says that its heroes put cuttings from grape vines in their pockets before battle. (Editor’s note: Archeologists have traced the world’s first known wine creation back to Georgia, to the people of the South Caucasus in 6,000 BCE.)

The connection Georgians and Ukrainians have with their homeland cannot be erased. Georgians know that their fate is linked to that of Ukraine, and they know that strength comes from confronting the forces that prevent their sovereignty while also seeking unity — with one another and through EU and Euro-Atlantic integration.

Evangeline Linkous is program director and associate professor for the University of South Florida Master of Urban and Regional Planning program. She is currently a Fulbright Scholar in Tbilisi, Georgia. This column was submitted as part of a partnership with the Scholars Strategy Network Florida chapter.