GEORGIA: GOVERNOR OF SHIDA KARTLI LOOKS TO THE

C O N F I D E N T I A L TBILISI 002203 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 12/10/2019 TAGS: PREL PGOV PBTS GG SUBJECT: GEORGIA: GOVERNOR OF SHIDA KARTLI LOOKS TO THE FUTURE Classified By: Ambassador John R. Bass for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). ¶1. (C) Summary. Shida Kartli regional governor Vladimer (Lado) Vardzelashvili told us he is concentrating on looking past last year's conflict with Russia, helping the region's residents resume their daily lives and move forward instead of remaining bound to the war. In his view, the path to reintegration of the disputed territories, and specifically South Ossetia, lay in making life in Georgia exceedingly attractive both economically and socially. The Governor also discussed economic and agricultural issues, specifically the need for cold storage, modern machinery, and irrigation systems in the region. End summary. ¶2. (C) Comment. It is significant that the Governor, a Saakashvili loyalist, is focused on urging his constituents to break their ties to the conflict and look instead to the future and rebuilding their lives. This is not a common response among Saakashvili supporters, who, while publicly espousing the need to make return to Georgia an attractive option for the disputed territories, have not necessarily been vocal in encouraging the population to move past the conflict. We plan to encourage the Governor's attitude and support him in promoting this view. End comment. YOUNG AND BURDENED ¶3. (C) Vladimer (Lado) Vardzelashvili become Governor of Shida Kartli only four months before the August 2008 conflict. He is a young (30-year old) and charismatic Saakashvili loyalist. He remained in Gori during the August war and tells the story of the immediate experience of the war vividly. He described to the Ambassador his convictions that the Russians were planning to stay in Gori for the long-term, based on his experiences with the Russian commander, whose demands to the civil administration reflected a long-term deployment mindset. Vardzelashvili stated his opinion that Russia had been planning to attack Georgia for some time and that circumstances had merely accelerated this plan. A VISIONARY THINKER ¶4. (C) Vardzelashvili talked at length about the need for the people in his region, who were most directly affected by the war, to move on from the conflict and resume a sense of normalcy about their lives. He did not try to trivialize the emotional and psychological impact of the conflict on the people, but rather, said that he urged them to move on from the conflict and look to the future. In this way wounds could begin to heal for people on both sides of the boundary. He also noted the importance of making life in Georgia economically and socially attractive to the people of the disputed territories; that this is the only path to reintegration. ECONOMIC HARDSHIPS CONTINUE ¶5. (SBU) Vardzelashvili described fo the Ambassador in their December 10 meeting the agricultural and economic concerns affecting his region. He said the most immediate issues were the need for cold storage, modern machinery, and irrigation systems. Without cold storage, orchard owners are not able to preserve their yields during the off-season when they could charge higher prices (Note: USAID completed the rehabilitation of a cold storage facility in the region in November. End note). Vardzelashvili also said that the region needs new agricultural machinery, as much of the equipment is outdated and in need of repair. He said that a service center, from which farmers could rent equipment and bring equipment for repair, would be a great benefit (Note: Qbring equipment for repair, would be a great benefit (Note: Millennium Challenge Georgia has funded Farm Service Centers in Shida Kartli, and two have been identified to receive further assistance to purchase farm mechanization equipment. USAID has also recently launched a project to assist with farm mechanization equipment at service centers throughout Georgia. End note). Finally, the Governor raised the need for irrigation systems; the Ambassador noted that the USG is planning to provide support for the development of irrigation systems in Georgia, although specific systems have not yet been determined. BASS