Thousands of opposition supporters protested in the Georgian capital, Tbilisi. Oppose the plans of the government, which wants to buy gas from Russia.
Update 17:46
Georgians, holding flags of their country, screaming “not for Gazprom.” They formed a 6-kilometer chain of the Russian Embassy to the seat of government.
The protest was organized by the pro-Western party of the former president of Georgia, Mikheil Saakashvili. He accuses it the Russian authorities about the use of Gazprom as a political weapon, used to stopping Georgia from closer to the West.
The demonstrators, supporting the main Georgian opposition party, worried that buying gas from the state-controlled Russian monopoly uzależniłoby Georgia from Moscow.
writes the Associated Press – before the Sunday demonstration of the opposition seemed to be on a winning position. The Georgian government has announced since Friday that it has signed an agreement with neighboring Azerbaijan on increasing gas supplies enough to fully cover the needs of Georgia.
AP notes that in the past, the Georgian Energy Minister Kakha Kaladze, justifying negotiations with Gazprom said that Azerbaijan does not have the technical capacity to supply more gas to Georgia. Currently Kaladze says that this issue is resolved.
The leader of the opposition in parliament David Bakradze accused on Sunday the authorities that tried to deceive, saying that Azerbaijan is not possible to increase the supply of gas. – They failed because people did not believe them and forced the government to do everything possible to get extra fuel from Azerbaijan. We will not let Georgia came under Russian control – he said.
AP notes that there was also the question of the manner in which Gazprom has to settle with Georgia for gas transported through its territory to Armenia. In the past, Georgia had charged 10 percent. transported through its territory of raw material, but recently Gazprom demanded that Tbilisi accepted the transit fees, apparently expecting that will force it towards the Georgian to buy Russian gas.
Kaladze said that Gazprom has agreed, however, maintain the existing agreement Barter, but added that the contract in this case has not yet been signed.
According to the government in Tbilisi, Georgia receives 200 million cubic meters of Russian gas a year in transit fees. The new agreement with the Azerbaijani state company Socar Georgia envisages providing an additional 500 million cubic meters of blue fuel.
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