GEORGIA: FOREIGN MINISTER BRIEFS ON MUTINY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 TBILISI 000866

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/06/2019
TAGS: PGOV PREL MOPS RS GG
SUBJECT: GEORGIA: FOREIGN MINISTER BRIEFS ON MUTINY

REF: A. TBILISI 857

B. TBILISI 852

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Classified By: Ambassador John F. Tefft for Reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) Summary. On May 5, Foreign Minister Grigol Vashadze
briefed the diplomatic corps on the attempted mutiny earlier
in the day, which ended peacefully. He offered additional
details on the event itself, which he described as designed
to disrupt the NATO Partnership for Peace exercise; he and
the NATO Secretary General nevertheless agreed by phone to go
forward with the exercise. Vashadze did not make any
specific allegations about Russian involvement; he noted that
the individual arrested on the eve of the mutiny had boasted
of Russian support, but said the investigation would need to
determine whether these statements were accurate. Vashadze
did suggest, however, a number of steps taken recently by
Russia were suspicious. On May 6, according to press
reports, 10 military officers and 13 civilians were detained
in connection with the mutiny; another 50 military officers
were being questioned. End summary.


2. (C) Foreign Minister Vashadze provided assembled
ambassadors an overview of the May 5 events, which echoed
information post had already gathered from various sources
(reftels). Suggesting that the episode had been blown
somewhat out of proportion, he offered the following
additional details. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs also
released a statement (see paragraph 5).

-- The incident ended peacefully by 1500, with no violence.
Although the mutineers had announced they would not obey
orders, they also announced they would not leave the confines
of the base, so there was never much likelihood of bloodshed.

-- An investigation is underway. In response to a question
from the British ambassador, Vashadze offered his assurances
that the investigation would be conducted in a transparent
fashion.

-- The Constitutional Protection Department detained a
Georgian citizen, Gia Ghvaladze, at 11 P.M. on May 4 (the
night before the mutiny) on suspicion of helping to plan the
uprising. He served as a major in the special forces under
Shevardnadze, and he is known to have had contacts with
Russian special forces. Authorities are looking for Georgian
citizen Koba Otanadze, who served in Shevardnadze's
government and was associated with a mutiny at the same
Mukhrovani base in May 2001.

-- According to Ghvaladze himself, the primary purpose of the
action was to disrupt the planned NATO Partnership for Peace
exercises. Vashadze spoke with NATO Secretary General by
phone, and the two agreed the exercises would proceed. In
response to a question from the Israeli ambassador, Vashadze
said that the government had not received official
notification of the withdrawal of any of the countries
planning to participate in the exercises, although there had
been some speculation in the press.

-- These individuals, and possibly others, were in contact
with current officers at the Mukhrovani base and helped plan
today's mutiny. In response to a question from the
Ambassador, Vashadze said that the government does not have
concrete information about the nature of the connection
between the alleged ringleaders, who are primarily retired
from the military, and the active officers involved, such as
the commander of the battalion. Although it is premature to
Qthe commander of the battalion. Although it is premature to
speculate before the investigation has been completed, it
would be hard to imagine how a plot involving an active
military unit could have been created with coordination with
the unit's current command.

-- Many of the soldiers in the unit did not know what was
going on. More broadly, the vast majority of the military
did not know what was going on, and there was therefore
little likelihood that the mutiny could have spread. In
response to a question from the papal nuncio, Vashadze said
that there was no evidence of any other disturbances or
questionable units in the military -- that in fact, there was
evidence of the opposite, that everyone else was acting quite
normally.

-- In general, no one would be allowed to return Georgia to
the lawless period of the 1990s, when armed groups ran the
country.


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RUSSIAN INVOLVEMENT?


3. (C) Regarding the possibility of Russian involvement,
Vashadze said the government does not yet have concrete
information proving that Russia was involved in any way in
this plot. The government does know, however, that several
of the individuals connected with the event have in the past
had contacts with Russian secret services. Furthermore,
Ghvaladze was recorded on tape as stating that Russia would
provide support to the mutiny. The GOG is investigating
whether there was any truth to Ghvaladze's claim. (Note: A
tape shown on national television, supposedly made by an
undercover agent, seems to show Ghvaladze telling possible
co-conspirators that Russia would provide help, including
money from South Ossetia and 5,000 troops, presumably also
from South Ossetia.) Vashadze also noted that the
conspirators already had considerable funds, and that there
was only one likely source for such money: Russia, although
perhaps not the government. He speculated, for example, that
an individual like Aslan Abashidze could have supplied the
funds.


4. (C) Although Vashadze refrained from making any direct
accusations about Russian involvement, he did suggest that
Russia would not hesitate to use any political unrest to its
own advantage. He also noted that a series of recent steps
by Russia raised serious questions about their intentions.
He remarked that the Black Sea Fleet had been deployed and
the amount of Russian forces in the occupied regions had
tripled. Although the Russian security service had not
announced any special regime along the boundary lines, he
said that local residents had reported extra measures were in
place. The head of the EU Monitoring Mission told the
assembled diplomats that he had received word from Colonel
Tarasov, Russian commander of South Ossetia, that Russian
forces had reinforced their observation posts along the South
Ossetian administrative boundary in response to the incident,
because they did not have much information about what was
happening, but would not take any further steps. In
response, Vashadze said he found it suspicious that the
Russian Ambassadors to NATO and the UN had only the day
before, on May 4, made allegations about a buildup of
Georgian forces, including 2,500 special forces, near
Abkhazia and South Ossetia.

MFA STATEMENT


5. (U) Begin text of Georgian MFA statement on the mutiny,
released on May 5:

On the Failed Military Mutiny

At present, the situation in Tbilisi and the rest of Georgia,
including the Mukhrovani military base where a failed mutiny
was planned, is calm and under full governmental control.

According to the organizers of the failed mutiny, their
primary intent was to disrupt planned NATO-PfP exercises
scheduled to begin in Georgia on May 6, 2009. Other claims
made by the organizers cannot be confirmed and are the
subject of an on-going investigation.

On 4 May 2009 at approximately 2300 the Constitutional
Security Department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA)
of Georgia detained a Georgian citizen, Mr. Gia Ghvaladze, on
charges of organizing a military mutiny. Mr. Ghvaladze
previously served as a Major in the Special Forces Department
at the now disbanded Ministry of State Security.

The Constitutional Security Department of the MIA is
QThe Constitutional Security Department of the MIA is
continuing its investigation into the case including the
whereabouts of Mr. Koba Otanadze (born in 1967),who is at
present wanted by Georgian authorities. Mr. Otanadze is
under investigation for his role in organizing the mutiny.
Mr. Otanadze was previously associated with leading a
military mutiny at the Mukhrovani military base in May 2001.

Another suspect in the case, Mr. Zaza Mushkudiani, the Head
of the Ranger Battalion of Georgian Ministry of Defense, and
close associate of Mr. Ghvaladze is also under investigation.

For further information please contact the Head of the
Information and Analytical Department at the Ministry of
Internal Affairs of Georgia, Mr. Shota Utiashvili, at
995-77-50-60-56 or shota.security@gov.ge.

End text.

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TEFFT