KITSMARISHVILI GETS AIRTIME IN RUSSIA, BRIEFLY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 MOSCOW 003489 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/05/2018 TAGS: PREL PGOV GG RS SUBJECT: KITSMARISHVILI GETS AIRTIME IN RUSSIA, BRIEFLY Classified By: Pol MinCouns Alice G Wells for reasons 1.4(b) and (d) ¶1. (C) Summary: While Russian government officials initially seized on the apparent sensationalism of former Georgian Ambassador to Russia Erosi Kitsmarishvili's November 25 testimony about Georgian responsibility for starting the war in August and his claims of U.S. support for Georgia's use of force, subsequent press reporting was muted, and later questioned Kitsmarishvili's motives and credibility. Georgian charge Givi Shugarov said that during his tenure in Moscow, Kitsmarishvili heard a consistent message from U.S. officials that the U.S. would not support Georgian use of force. End Summary. -------------- We told you so -------------- ¶2. (SBU) Russian government officials initially seized on the apparent sensationalism of former Georgian Ambassador to Russia Erosi Kitsmarishvili's November 25 testimony before the Parliamentary Commission Investigating the August Conflict, where he publicly stated his view that Georgia's leaders wanted conflict with Russia and that the United States gave the Georgians a "green light" to take military action. Russian permanent envoy to the UN Vitaliy Churkin said that Kitsmarishvili's testimony had proved that Russia had been right all along and that Georgia had been planning an attack on South Ossetia and Abkhazia for a long time. Konstantin Kosachev, the head of the State Duma's International Affairs Committee, said Kitsmarishvili's testimony showed that "more and more Georgian politicians realize that the policy of Saakashvili's regime fundamentally contradicts the interests of Georgian people." -------------- Initial Press Reporting Muted -------------- ¶3. (U) However, even the early press reports captured Kitsmarishvili's about-face in asserting that he had been able to discredit the alleged U.S. "green light." In a November 26 interview with influential radio station Ekho Moskvy, Kitsmarishvili blamed both Russia and Georgia for the August conflict, claiming he had "reliable information" that Russia knew about Georgia's plans and was actively preparing for a conflict, while "pushing Georgian president Saakashvili to act." Kitsmarishvili claimed that he had not been able to finish his statement about U.S. acquiescence for Georgian aggression during his testimony. Accusing DFM Bokeria of 
saying Secretary Rice had given the GOG the green light for actions in Akhazia during her July 9-10 visit to Tbilisi, Kitsmarishvili now added that he had checked that allegation out, which "proved to be wrong and rubbish." ¶4. (U) In a November 27 telephone interview, Moskovskiy Komsomolets (MK) reported that Kitsmarishvili accused Georgia of beginning the armed conflict, which he alleged Saakashvili had been planning since 2004. However, MK also quoted Kitsmarishvili claiming "the Russian military elite had been pushing Georgia in many ways toward this scenario," and that Russia knew the exact time of the planned attack on Tskhinvali. Influential business daily Kommersant on the same day reported that Kitsmarishvili concluded Georgian authorities had "misinterpreted" the Rice-Saakashvili talks. -------------- Later Skepticism -------------- ¶5. (U) Subsequent press reporting reflected skepticism about Kitsmarishvili's credibility, reverting to journalistic precision over scoring cheap points against U.S. policies. Nezavisimaya Gazeta December 1 questioned how Kitsmarishvili could have been privy to all the sensitive information he claimed to have, and argued that his refusal to name his sources had caused his "seance of revelations" to "lose its effect." ¶6. (U) Kremlin ally Konstantin Rykov's Vzglad on December 1 linked Kitsmarishvili's accusation that the GOG was also to blame for the August conflict with his plans to join the opposition and rebuild relations with Russia. Several other sources associated Kitsmarishvili's criticism of the GOG with his interest in regaining control over the Rustavi-2 TV station he claimed the GOG had seized from him. -------------- Georgian Representation -------------- MOSCOW 00003489 002 OF 002 ¶7. (C) In a meeting December 1, Givi Shugarov, charge of the Georgian representation in Russia, carefully enumerated the occasions on which Kitsmarishvili during his May 15-July 12 tenure in Moscow as ambassador to the Russian Federation had heard U.S. Embassy personnel and visiting USG officials such as DAS Matt Bryza state that the U.S. would not support the use of force by Georgia to resolve the conflicts in South Ossetia and Abkhazia. Shugarov said that Kitsmarishvili had never indicated to him that he had heard anything different from USG officials, or from anybody else referencing USG officials' alleged statements. ¶8. (C) Shugarov said he could not confirm or deny that Kitsmarishvili was drifting away from Saakashvili while in Moscow. Stating that he had never gotten close to Kitsmarishvili during his short tenure, Shugarov declined to comment on the motivations behind Kitsmarishvili's statements, except to point to press speculation that he wanted to regain control of the Rustavi-2 TV channel. -------------- Comment -------------- ¶9. (C) While Kitsmarishvili related his concerns to us at the time that Saakashvili was unduly influenced by his "war cabinet" and too impatient in his diplomacy with Russia, he heard a consistent message that the U.S. did not support any Georgian recourse to war. BEYRLE