“It is strange that after 30 years of independence, Armenia and Georgia still haven’t managed to truly become friends:” Archil Sikharulidze

Archil Sikharulidze, political analyst and founder of the SIKHA FOUNDATION research institute, noted at a press conference held at the Alpha Media Center on the topic “How to preserve subjectivity in the era of new corridors?” that he is surprised that certain barriers between Armenia and Georgia as states still exist after three decades.

“It is strange that after 30 years of independence we still haven’t managed to truly become friends. I have said this more than once. I am surprised that over these three decades there are still certain barriers between Armenia and Georgia as states. This is very strange to me, I consider it unnatural,” he said.

Speaking about a possible new “Iron Curtain,” the political analyst noted that it already exists.

“Let me give a specific example: a colleague of mine from Moscow, who for many years had been collaborating with European and American scholars, once called and told me that all his friends in Europe had decided to stop talking to him. They had been warned that all scholars in Russia are ‘Kremlin agents.’ And speaking from the Georgian example, I had colleagues who insisted that I should not speak Russian,” he noted, adding that a similar situation had arisen with Armenian colleagues as well.