Georgia

From about the 6th century BC Georgia was colonized by Ionian Greeks; the western region was known as Colchis and the eastern region as Iberia. In about the 4th century BC Georgia was united into a single kingdom, with Mtskheta as its capital. Christianity was introduced in the 4th century AD. Until the 7th century control over Georgia was contested by the Persian and Byzantine empires. The region was conquered by the Arabs in the 7th century and by the Seljuk Turks in the 11th century. King David II expelled the Turks in the early 12th century, reuniting Georgia as a kingdom. The kingdom was crushed by Mongol invaders in the 13th century. Thereafter Georgia was under the control of Iran and the Ottoman Empire until the 18th century. A Georgian kingdom was proclaimed in the mid-18th century, but Russia obtained control of the state's foreign affairs in 1783. In 1801 the last Georgian king abdicated, and Georgia became a part of the Russian Empire. In 1918, following the Russian Revolution, Georgia became an independent state. In 1921 Red Army troops invaded the country, and the region was brought under Bolshevik (later Communist) control. In 1922 Georgia was joined with Armenia and Azerbaijan to form the Transcaucasian Soviet Federated Socialist Republic (SFSR), which then became part of the newly founded Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR). When the Transcaucasian SFSR was dissolved in 1936, Georgia was made a constituent republic, or Soviet Socialist Republic (SSR), of the Soviet Union. Georgia declared its independence in April 1991. In December of that year, the USSR broke apart. Serious internal strife has plagued Georgia since the last years of the USSR. With the advent of the policy of glasnost' (Russian for "openness"), brought about by former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, the Abkhazian and Ossetian nationals in Georgia began to agitate for increased autonomy in the late 1980s. Friction between the Georgian government and the ethnic enclaves increased after the Georgian Supreme Soviet passed a law establishing the superior status of the Georgian language in 1989. In 1990 South Ossetia declared itself a sovereign republic and expressed its desire to be joined with the republic of Alania (North Ossetia), in the Russian Federation. In response, the Georgian Supreme Soviet abolished the region as an administrative entity. Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev annulled the Georgian parliament's decision early the following year. Fighting broke out between Georgians and Ossetians and did not abate until a four-party peacekeeping force composed of Russian, Georgian, South Ossetian, and Alanian contingents was deployed. A second conflict developed soon after the election of the country's first president, Zviad Gamsakhurdia, in May 1991. Gamsakhurdia was driven from office in January 1992 amid charges of corruption, human-rights violations, and dictatorial abuse of power. The presidency was abolished, and Eduard Shevardnadze, former Soviet minister of foreign affairs, was chosen to lead the country as acting chairman of the State Council. Shevardnadze was elected chairman by popular vote later that year. Gamsakhurdia and his followers mounted several attempts to retake T'bilisi by force, and in October 1993 threatened K'ut'aisi. The revolt was suspended after Gamsakhurdia died on December 31, 1993, or January 1, 1994. Although his widow claimed he committed suicide, the circumstances of his death have never been fully clarified. A third conflict began between Georgian and Abkhazian forces after the Abkhaz Supreme Soviet declared Abkhazian independence in July 1992. Georgian authorities sent troops into Abkhazia ostensibly to protect supply routes and pursue forces loyal to Gamsakhurdia. Heavy fighting soon broke out, with the Abkhazian side receiving support from Caucasian peoples of similar ethnic background in Russia. Georgian forces lost considerable ground until a cease-fire agreement was reached in July 1993. The Abkhazians violated the agreement and expelled the Georgian militia and more than 200,000 Georgian refugees by October 1993. In the same month the Georgian government joined the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) in order to win Russian military support. An agreement was reached in February 1994 that allowed Russia to maintain three military bases on Georgian territory in exchange for military training and supplies. In April a UN-sponsored agreement was reached between Abkhazia and the Georgian government. The agreement established an immediate cease-fire, to be guaranteed by a force of about 2500 Russian peacekeeping troops. Under the agreement, Abkhazia would be allowed to write a constitution, form a parliament, and maintain other symbols of independence such as a flag, anthem, and coat of arms in return for remaining part of Georgia. The agreement also established committees to oversee the cease-fire and subsequent repatriation of the 250,000 Georgian refugees who had fled the area when the fighting began. In November Abkhazia adopted its own constitution and declared itself to be the Republic of Abkhazia, drawing denouncements from Georgian leadership who claimed the move violated the April agreement. In August 1995 Eduard Shevardnadze sustained cuts to his hands and face when a nearby car bomb exploded as he was leaving the parliament building in T'bilisi. Analysts said the bomb was clearly intended for Shevardnadze. That month the legislature approved a new constitution, which restored the office of the presidency and established a 235-member legislature; the constitution did not define the status of Georgia's autonomous areas. Shevardnadze, who had pushed for the new constitution, declared his intention to run for president in upcoming elections. In November 1995 presidential and legislative elections were held in the republic. Shevardnadze was overwhelmingly elected as president, winning more that 70 percent of the vote. His party, The Citizens' Union of Georgia, won the largest number of seats in the new parliament (about 24 percent of the vote). Of more than 50 parties participating in the election, only two others received the minimum 5 percent of the vote needed to make it into the legislature; they were the National Democratic Party (about 8 percent) and the All Georgian Union of Revival (about 7 percent), both pro-reform opposition parties. Although Shevardnadze's opponents complained of electoral irregularities, most international observers said the election was free and fair. Later that month, Dzhaba Ioseliani, a political opponent of Shevardnadze's, was arrested in connection with the August assassination attempt on the Georgian leader; one of Ioseliani's chief aides had been arrested soon after the attempt. The November elections were not held in the secessionist regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, where sporadic clashes continued to occur. A political settlement had not been reached as of mid-1997, and Russian troops continued to occupy the secessionist regions.