At a briefing held after the political council meeting, the ruling party’s executive secretary Mamuka Mdinaradze announced that Bidzina Ivanishvili, the ruling Georgian Dream (GD) party’s Honorary Chairman, wants Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze to remain in office. According to Mdinaradze, the party’s political council, as expected, “fully supported” Ivanishvili’s nominee. Mdinaradze also said that the GD faction would nominate incumbent Shalva Papuashvili for the post of Parliament Speaker.

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Former Prime Minister and the leader of the Gakharia-For Georgia party Giorgi Gakharia held a briefing and urged the representatives of the diplomatic corps accredited in Georgia not to attend the opening session of the Parliament. He called on them to refrain from recognizing the legitimacy of what he described as fraudulent election results.

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The International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy (ISFED), My Vote,and Georgia’s Young Lawyers Association (GYLA), three election watchdog organizations, have released a joint assessment of the parliamentary elections held on October 26. In their joint assessment, watchdogs noted that the results of the election “cannot be considered free and fair.”

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Transparency International Georgia and the Civil Society Foundation, two observation mission organizations, have submitted an Amicus Curiae brief to the Constitutional Court of Georgia. The brief concerns a lawsuit filed on November 16 by President Salome Zurabishvili, challenging the official results of the 26 October parliamentary elections. The Amicus Curiae brief contains evidence of electoral violations gathered by the My Vote observers on election day.

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Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe’s Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (OSCE/ODIHR) expressed concern over recent cases of excessive use of force by the police in dispersing rallies and called on the authorities to “facilitate peaceful assemblies and engage in dialogue without violence.”

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People who have been demonstrating for weeks against the fraudulent elections are now marching in support of 21-year-old student Mate Devidze, who was arrested on charges of assaulting police and faces 7 years in prison. Devidze was arrested during the violent dispersal of a 48-hour peaceful protest on November 19.

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Tbilisi City Court sentenced two activists, Isako Devidze and Davit Tsotsoria, to 8 days of imprisonment after their arrest during the violent dispersal of the rally on Chavchavadze and Melikishvili Avenues. Irakli Andghuladze, another activist detained during the crackdown, was fined 2700 GEL by the court. A total of 16 people were arrested by police during the dispersal of the rally, three of whom were released on parole.

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The Foreign Ministry confirmed to Civil.ge that another Georgian citizen, Levan Lokhishvili, was killed while fighting in Ukraine. He was reportedly killed during the Russian attack near Kherson, in southern Ukraine. This recent casualty brings the unofficial death toll of Georgian fighters in Ukraine to 60.

Dear meeting participants!
I extend my sincere greetings to you – the participants of the 12th …

Azerbaijan and Turkey-Israel tensions

Turkey’s President confirmed that he denied Israel’s president access to Turkish airspace for a flight to Baku to attend COP29. An Azerbaijani analyst interprets Ankara’s move as a response to Baku’s stance on Israel, which diverges significantly from Turkey’s position. “That said, Turkey could have handled this differently, especially on a matter as sensitive for Azerbaijan as the level of representation at COP29,” political commentator Ahmed Alili stated.

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• Boat tours resume on Baku boulevard after two-year pause
• Systematic election violations in Georgia aimed to secure ruling party victory, say local NGOs
• Opinion: Armenia faces challenge if EU observers leave without security guarantees

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What happened?

Israeli President Isaac Herzog was scheduled to visit Baku on November 19 to attend the UN Climate Conference COP29.

However, on November 17, Herzog’s visit was cancelled “for security reasons,” according to the president’s office, which did not provide further details.

“In light of the situation assessment and for security reasons, the President of the State of Israel decided to cancel his trip to the climate conference in Azerbaijan,” the official statement read.

COP29: What to know about climate summit in Azerbaijan

Central goal of COP29 is an agreement on a fair and ambitious New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) for climate financing

As the host country, Azerbaijan stated that the real reason for the cancellation of the Israeli president’s visit was Turkey’s refusal to allow the Wing of Zion aircraft to pass through its airspace.

“Unfortunately, several days of intensive negotiations through diplomatic channels yielded no results. Azerbaijan has created all the necessary conditions for the participation of all parties in the climate conference. However, the situation surrounding the Israeli president’s visit arose due to reasons beyond our control,” a representative of Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs told journalists.

“We denied him access to our airspace” 

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan confirmed that he denied the Israeli president’s plane access to Turkish airspace for a flight to Baku.

“We have cut trade ties with Israel and did not allow it to use our airspace,” Erdoğan said during a press conference at the G-20 summit in Brazil.

“As you know, we have completely severed trade ties with Israel. Regarding the Israeli president’s visit to Azerbaijan for the COP-29 summit, we did not allow him to use our airspace,” Erdoğan clarified.

He added that President Herzog had other routes available to reach Baku.

“Turkey is obligated to demonstrate its position on a number of issues, and we will do so,” he said.

It is worth noting that Israeli ministers who traveled to Baku used commercial flights via Georgia.

War between Israel and Palestine: which side is Azerbaijan on?

Israel is one of the country’s closest allies and Palestine is a Muslim country backed by Ankara, Baku’s closest ally

Meeting between Turkish and Israeli intelligence chiefs

On November 19, Ronen Bar, the head of Israel’s Shin Bet security service, visited Turkey for a meeting with İbrahim Kalın, the head of the National Intelligence Organization.

The meeting was reported by The Times of Israel.

According to the newspaper, the intelligence chiefs discussed efforts to resume ceasefire talks in Gaza and the possibility of Ankara facilitating these efforts.

Earlier, an unnamed Arab official told The Times of Israel that members of the leadership of the radical Palestinian group Hamas were currently in Turkey.

Official Ankara, however, denied allegations about Hamas’s Politburo relocating to Turkey. The Turkish Foreign Ministry stated that these accusations were unfounded.

Expert commentary

Head of the Atlas Research Center, Elkhan Shahinoglu, points out that the tension in Turkish-Israeli relations has once again affected Azerbaijan:

“The President of Israel was unable to attend the COP29 event held in Baku because Turkish airspace is closed to Israeli planes. However, given that the Israeli side was aware in advance of Turkey’s airspace restrictions, the Israeli leader could have participated in the Baku event by using alternative routes through other countries, even if it meant a longer journey.”

The recent incident has clearly demonstrated that the tension in Turkish-Israeli relations has also affected Azerbaijan.

Meanwhile, a recent example of the information war between Israel and Turkey has also drawn attention. Reports claim that the political leadership of Hamas was forced to leave its headquarters in Doha, the capital of Qatar, due to internal disagreements. Israeli media quickly reported that Hamas had relocated its office to Turkey. While this sparked widespread discussions, Turkey’s Foreign Ministry stated that these claims were unfounded.

“This ongoing conflict between the two countries shows no sign of subsiding. The sooner it ends, the better it will be for Azerbaijan,” he concluded.

Turkey could have handled a sensitive issue for Azerbaijan, such as the level of representation at COP29, differently, political analyst Ahmed Alili noted in an interview with Turan outlet.

“Of course, this situation has raised certain questions about Turkish-Azerbaijani relations. However, Azerbaijan’s position on Israel has always been distinct. Azerbaijan’s foreign policy is often criticized—for instance, the European Union and the United States accuse Azerbaijan of being overly dependent on Russia. After the 2020 Karabakh war, Azerbaijan’s foreign policy was accused of complete reliance on Turkey.”

Azerbaijan’s foreign policy on Israel, Kosovo, and several other issues differs from Turkey’s, and in some cases, Azerbaijan has taken positions contrary to Turkey’s preferences. This demonstrates the independence of Azerbaijan’s foreign policy.

It is possible that Ankara has taken note of Azerbaijan’s independent stance on issues related to Israel and decided to assert its own independent position, even if it runs counter to Azerbaijan’s. In reality, this is a standard practice.

That said, I believe Ankara could have acted differently on such a sensitive matter for Azerbaijan, such as the level of representation at COP29 and the arrival of global leaders in Azerbaijan.”

Azerbaijan and Turkey-Israel tensions

EU Parliament calls for sanctions on Ivanishvili, Kobakhidze,Kaladze

A resolution authored by the Renew Europe political group in the European Parliament calls for sanctions against Bidzina Ivanishvili, the honorary chairman of Georgia’s ruling Georgian Dream party, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze, and Georgian Dream’s Secretary-General, Tbilisi Mayor Kakha Kaladze.

“The integrity of electoral processes in Georgia and the protection of political freedoms are crucial for the country’s democratic development and its potential EU membership. The parliamentary elections held on October 26 did not meet the standards expected of an EU candidate country,” the resolution states.

The resolution will be debated in the European Parliament from November 25 to 28.

EU Commission mission to probe Georgia’s October 26 election violations

The decision was made following discussions at the meeting of EU foreign ministers.

The resolution condemns violations of international standards observed during Georgia’s October 26 elections and calls for a thorough, prompt, and transparent independent investigation into all reported irregularities.

The resolution also:

• urges political forces and civil society in Georgia to engage in inclusive dialogue to overcome the political crisis and organize new elections under international oversight;
• calls on Georgian authorities to demonstrate their commitment to European values by ensuring full transparency of the electoral process;
• expresses solidarity with the Georgian people in their fight for democratic rights and the country’s European future, reaffirming support for their democratic and European aspirations;
• strongly urges Georgian authorities to adopt and implement reforms demanded by the majority of citizens, in line with Georgia’s goal of EU membership;
• commends President Salome Zourabichvili’s efforts to return the country to the path of democracy and European development;
• reiterates the call for an end to attacks on civil society, independent media, and the LGBTQ+ community, demands the withdrawal of laws targeting these groups, and urges authorities to ensure a supportive environment for civil society and media;
• calls on the European Union and its member states to fully support Georgian civil society and media during this challenging period;
• urges the suspension of EU financial aid to the Georgian government until all election-related violations are addressed and recently adopted illiberal laws are repealed;
• calls on the EU and its member states to impose sanctions on Georgian political leaders and officials responsible for democratic backsliding and electoral violations, recommending personal sanctions against Bidzina Ivanishvili, Irakli Kobakhidze, and Kakha Kaladze for their roles in the country’s democratic decline;
• condemns the premature visit of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán to Georgia shortly after the October 26 elections, viewing it as another attempt to undermine the EU’s common foreign policy.

EU Parliament calls for sanctions on Ivanishvili, Kobakhidze, Kaladze

Development of Armenia’s defense industry

“In 2024, we project that productivity in the defense industry will increase by at least 200 million drams (approximately $520,000) compared to last year,” Armenian Minister of High-Tech Industry Mkhitar Hayrapetyan announced in parliament.

He acknowledged that in recent years, significantly less funding was allocated to research and testing in the military-industrial complex than budgeted. The state budget includes an allocation of 4.5 billion drams (approximately $11.7 million). According to the minister, additional legislative regulations are needed to make the sector more attractive for business. This would incentivize entrepreneurs to seek government grants and fulfill related contracts.

In recent months, the development of the defence industry has been a frequent topic in parliamentary discussions. Opposition members have expressed concerns, while ruling faction deputies insist the sector is advancing at an accelerated pace, with new types of weaponry being produced.

“Yes, we have domestically produced weapons, and we have established mass production. Moreover, we even have serial production of fifth-generation weapons,” stated MP Armen Khachatryan.

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• “Promote cooperation in South Caucasus” – EU Special Representative Magdalena Grono in interview with JAMnews
• European Parliament resolution on Azerbaijan and relations with Armenia
• 56% of Armenians back a peace deal with Azerbaijan: IRI survey

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Opposition criticizes 2023 defence industry performance

The Minister of High-Tech Industry disagreed with opposition MPs’ claims about the defence industry’s lack of results in the past year. He suggested they consider that most contracts with executing companies were signed at the end of 2023:

“Overall, last year’s expenditure reached 1.1 billion drams (approximately $2.9 million).”

Mkhitar Hayrapetyan also announced that contracts for 2024 have already been signed. According to him, companies that received positive evaluations are expected to be provided with an advance payment of 919 million drams (approximately $2.4 million) by December 10.

He reminded that parliament recently amended the law “On the Defense-Industrial Complex” to “encourage innovative solutions in the military industry.”

‘Tangible and measurable results achieved’

The minister insists that the defence industry has achieved significant progress:

“These are tangible and measurable results, an objective reality. But posing for photos with various new developments is not my style.”

He also believes that officials should exercise restraint when discussing successes in this field, acknowledging that “in some cases, the temptation to deliver grandiose speeches is strong.”

“Armenia isn’t militarizing but raising cost of attacking it”: opinion

Commentary from military expert Leonid Nersisyan on Armenia’s arms procurement, its partnerships in the defense sector, as well as possible escalation and its estimated timeframe.

Ensuring continuous development is key

“Unprecedented, but significantly inferior to Baku”: expert on Armenia’s military spending

The Armenian government plans to increase military spending by approximately 20%. However, even with this increase, Azerbaijan’s military budget for 2025 remains nearly twice as large. Commentary from military expert Leonid Nersisyan.

Development of Armenia’s defense industry

Starting in December 2024, the North Atlantic Alliance will begin monitoring the underwater infrastructure of the Baltic Sea from the alliance’s maritime center established in Finland, Azernews reports.

The shipment of Togg’s new color option Ayder, which was announced to the public at the beginning of the month, has begun. Ayder green, which is the latest color option among the Togg T10X and represents the Black Sea Region, has been highly appreciated.

A love of video games can help a person develop character traits necessary for career growth, Azernews reports.

Politics complicate justice in Armenia  Courthouse News Service

The Australian authorities have passed a law limiting the age of users on social networks, prohibiting access for persons under 16 years of age, Azernews reports.