South Caucasus in 2017: political shocks, economic ambitions and mass protests

The year of 2017: the way it affected residents of the South-Caucasian regions, the events for which people will remember the past year and the historical developments of the year, see the review prepared by the "Caucasian Knot".

Georgia

Long-awaited path

In 2017, experts called the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway, opened after nearly 10 years of construction, one of the key events for the Georgian economy. According to the experts, the railway can significantly shorten the duration and cost of transportation from China to Europe.

New Georgian Constitution adopted amidst confrontation

On April 22, the State Constitutional Committee of Georgia adopted by majority of votes the updated draft Constitution of the country. Activists of the civil sector voted against the draft, and the opposition boycotted the voting in protest against disregard of its initiatives. The adopted amendments to the Constitution imply the country's transition to a parliamentary system of government and, in particular, abolition of direct presidential elections.

Special operations in Tbilisi and Pankisi Gorge

Starting from the evening on November 21 until the evening on November 22, a special operation was conducted in an apartment building in Gabriel Salos Street in the Isani District of Tbilisi. As a result, three suspected terrorists were killed, and another was detained. One special troops fighter was killed, and four law enforcers were injured. Said Dudaev, a Russian citizen, detained during the special operation, was arrested for the duration of the investigation.

According to sources, one of the killed suspects was identified as Guram Gumashvili, a native of the Pankisi Gorge. In turn, the State Security Service (SSS) of Georgia disclosed the name of another killed suspect. According to the Georgian SSS, Akhmed Chataev, wanted in Russia and included in the sanction list prepared by the US Department of Treasury, committed suicide bombing.

On December 26, another special operation was held in the Pankisi Gorge. As a result, five persons were detained. One of them, 19-year-old Temirlan Machalikashvili, was seriously wounded to his head. Law enforcers explained that the young man wanted to throw a grenade to them. The Prosecutor's Office launched an investigation under the article on abuse of power. According to the law enforcement bodies, the detained citizens of Georgia had relationship with Akhmed Chataev, killed in the special operation in Tbilisi.

European Parliament approves abolition of visas for Georgian citizens

On February 2, by the majority of votes, MEPs supported the introduction of a visa-free regime for citizens of Georgia to travel to the EU countries. The visa regulation should be now formally approved by the Council of the European Union, and then the agreement on it will be signed by the President of the European Parliament, as well as by a corresponding representative of Malta, the country chairing the Council of the European Union.

Azerbaijan

For Azerbaijan, like for Georgia, the opening of the Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway became one of the main events in 2017. However, this is not the only important event that affected the economic and political situation in the country.

"Family power" and its opponents

On February 21, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliev issued a resolution to appoint his wife Mekhriban Alieva the First Vice-President of Azerbaijan. The appointment provoked massive protests. On April 8, at a rally held in the Azerbaijani capital, oppositionists and their supporters protested against the establishment of "family power" in the country.

Prosecution of Afghan Mukhtarly and Gezyal Bairamly

In the evening on May 25, Gezyal Bairamly, the deputy chair of the opposition Popular Front Party of Azerbaijan (PFPA), was detained when she was returning from Georgia, where she underwent medical treatment. According to the State Border Service (SBS) of Azerbaijan, in the activist's hand luggage, border guards found undeclared money in the amount of 12,000 US dollars. The Investigating Department of the Azerbaijani State Border Service instituted a criminal case against Gezyal Bairamly under the charge of smuggling.

On May 29, Azerbaijani journalist Afghan Mukhtarly disappeared in Tbilisi. On May 30, it was reported that he had been taken to Baku. According to the journalist, in Tbilisi, he was captured by unidentified people in uniform, similar to the uniforms used by officers of the Georgian criminal police. They forced him into a car and took him away with them in direction of the Azerbaijani border. In Baku, Afghan Mukhtarly was accused of violating the state border and smuggling, and later, he was also charged with rendering resistance to a border guard. On May 31, the court pronounced a decision to arrest the journalist.

On January 25, 2017, in Baku, the court pronounced the guilty verdicts to Talekh Bagirzade, the leader of the movement "Muslim Unity", and 17 other defendants in the case of the riots in the Nardaran village in November 2015. Talekh Bagirzade and his deputy were sentenced to 20 years of imprisonment.

Abkhazia

A murder of well-known businessman

In the evening on December 13, in Abkhazia, businessman Pavel Ardzinba, who was on the international wanted list in the case on the attempted assassination of Alexander Ankvab, the former President of Abkhazia, and his acquaintance Dmitry Khagba, were killed on the Sukhumi-Psou highway.

Until his murder, Pavel Ardzinba was considered to be a "gray figure" of Abkhazia. According to local journalists, he avoided publicity, but strongly influenced the political processes in the republic.

Explosions of shells at ammunition depot

In the afternoon on August 2, an explosion occurred at the ammunition depot near the village of Primorskoe in the Gudauta District of Abkhazia. The fire provoked by the explosion resulted in detonation of shells. The shells did not cease detonating until the evening, and people evacuated from the emergency zone returned home on August 4. According to the Ministry for Public Health of Abkhazia, as a result of the explosions, 64 people were injured, including 35 citizens of Russia and 29 citizens of Abkhazia.

Armenia

Extradition of Grachya Arutyunyan and Valery Permyakov

On July 20, Grachya Arutyunyan, sentenced in 2014 to imprisonment for provoking a fatal road accident with 18 casualties, was extradited from Russia to Armenia, where he would serve his remaining term of punishment (he was initially sentenced to 6 years and 9 months of imprisonment).

According to rights defender Arthur Sakunts, the head of the Vanadzor Office of the Helsinki Initiative, it can be concluded from the media publications that the issue of the Grachya Arutyunyan's extradition was raised in connection with the case against Russian soldier Valery Permyakov, sentenced to life imprisonment for killing seven members of the Avetisyan family in Gyumri and extradited to Russia in May 2017.

Nagorno-Karabakh

Residents support new Constitution

On January 17, the majority of Nagorno-Karabakh MPs supported the holding of a referendum on the draft of the new Constitution, which presupposed the introduction of the presidential model of government. Oppositional MPs voted "against" the draft. According to the information released by the Central Election Commission (CEC) of Nagorno-Karabakh, at the referendum, the turnout was 76.44%, and 87.6% of voters supported the draft of the new Constitution.

Re-election of Bako Saakyan

On July 19, Bako Saakyan, the leader of the republic, was re-elected the President of Nagorno-Karabakh. He was supported by 28 out of 32 members of the National Assembly.

In Karabakh conflict zone

In the evening on July 4, the Nagorno-Karabakh Ministry of Defence (MoD) reported that since April 2016, the Azerbaijani armed forces used for the first time the TR-107 multiple artillery rocket system. The report was refuted by the Azerbaijani Ministry of Defence, which in turn stated that a woman and a two-year-old girl were killed and another woman was injured as a result of the shelling of the Alkhanly village from the Armenian side. After the Alkhanly incident, Armenia and Azerbaijan exchanged accusations of ignoring the rights of civilians.

On July 7, the Azerbaijani MoD reported fire attacks on Armenian positions and explained the shelling by the need to prevent diversion. According to the Azerbaijani MoD, the shelling was a response for the bombardment of the Alkhanly village. As a result of the shelling on July 7, three soldiers of the Defence Army were injured, the Nagorno-Karabakh MoD reported.

South Ossetia

New president and referendum on renaming

In South Ossetia, the main political event of 2017 was the election of the republic's President on April 9. Seven persons announced their desire to run for presidency. According to the results of the presidential election, Anatoly Bibilov, the speaker of the Parliament, won 54.8% of the votes. In South Ossetia, a referendum on the renaming of the republic was held simultaneously with the presidential election. 25,123 people or 80% of the total number of voters supported the initiative to change the republic's name to the State of Alania. The election was not recognized by Georgia, the European Union, Azerbaijan and NATO, and their representatives declared support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Georgia.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.