 | |
 Georgia |  Armenia |
|---|---|
| Diplomatic mission | |
| Embassy of Georgia, Yerevan | Embassy of Armenia, Tbilisi |
Foreign relations exist betweenArmenia andGeorgia. Both countries were formerSoviet republics of theSoviet Union. Relations between the two were originally tense for a while after their independence, which included multiple occurrences of voting against each other at the United Nations. However in recent years, relations between the two have vastly improved and modern relations are now seen as friendly. Both countries are members of theCouncil of Europe, theEuropean Political Community, and the EU'sEastern Partnership andEuronest Parliamentary Assembly.
Georgia is a member ofGUAM, which leaves Armenia out of regional transportation and energy projects.
Relations with Georgia are of particular importance for Armenia because under the border blockades imposed against Armenia byTurkey andAzerbaijan due to theNagorno-Karabakh conflict, Georgia offers Armenia its only land connection withEurope, with access to itsBlack Sea ports. However, because of Armenia's reliance on Russia and Georgia, both of which fought in the2008 South Ossetia War and thus severed diplomatic and economic relations, 70% of Armenia's imports entered via Georgia, especially from Russia, which has imposed an economic blockade on Georgia.
The Javakheti Region in southern Georgia contains a large Armenian population and although there have been local civic organizations, such asUnited Javakhk, pushing for autonomy, there has been no violence between Armenians and Georgians in the area since theGeorgian–Armenian War ended in 1919. Since independence, Georgian clergy have occupied the Armenian churches,[1] andArmenians in Georgia and Armenia have demonstrated against the destruction. On November 28, 2008, Armenian demonstrators in front of the Georgian embassy in Armenia demanded that the Georgian government immediately cease encroachments on the Armenian churches and punish those guilty, calling the Georgian party's actionsWhite Genocide.[2]
Some Armenians believe they are victims of a policy to shift the Samtskhe-Javakheti region's demographic balance since a number of Georgian families were settled there. Armenians are also underrepresented in the government, which leads to the perception of discrimination and mutual distrust. There were several protests, some of them turning violent after clashes with law enforcement agents.[3]
Georgia also supported Azerbaijan against Armenia inUnited Nations General Assembly Resolution 62/243, and Armenia has voted against severalUnited Nations resolutions on Abkhazia that reiterate theright of return of all displaced persons and refugees to Georgia's breakaway regions. Despite the stated differences and conflicting interests, bilateral relations between both countries are stable and developing.
In 2019, for the first time, Armenia broke with Russia on a vote about the right of Georgians to return to their homes in Abkhazia and South Ossetia. During a UN resolution held on 4 June, Armenia did not vote against Georgia in regards to the return of displaced people. The move was hailed as a sign of Armenia's attempt to strengthen relations with Georgia.[4] In June 2024, Armenia again supported Georgia by voting in favour of a UN resolution calling for the right to return of Georgians to Abkhazia and South Ossetia. The Armenian vote was heralded a "historic moment" by Georgian media.[5]
There are nearly 168,102Armenians in Georgia, among them 81,089 living inSamtskhe-Javakheti region and 53,409 inTbilisi.[6] The Georgian minority in Armenia stands at 974 according to the 2011 census in Armenia.[citation needed]
 Armenia |  Georgia | |
|---|---|---|
| Coat of arms |  |  |
| Population | 3,018,854 | 3,713,804 |
| Area | 29,743 km2 (11,484sq mi) | 69,700 km2 (26,900sq mi) |
| Population Density | 108.4/km2 (280.7/sq mi) | 53.5/km2 (138.6/sq mi) |
| Capital | Yerevan | Tbilisi |
| Largest City | Yerevan – 1,121,900 (1,230,000 Metro) | Tbilisi – 1,171,100 (1,485,293 Metro) |
| Government | Unitaryparliamentaryrepublic | Unitaryparliamentaryconstitutional republic |
| Official languages | Armenian | Georgian |
| Current Leader | PresidentVahagn Khachaturyan Prime MinisterNikol Pashinyan | PresidentSalome Zourabichvili Prime MinisterIrakli Kobakhidze |
| Main religions | 92.5%Armenian Apostolic Church, 2.3% otherChristian, 0.8%Yazidism, 4.4% None/Other | 83.4%Eastern Orthodoxy, Georgian Orthodox Church, 10.7%Islam, 3.9%Armenian Apostolic Church, 0.8%Roman Catholic Church, 1.2% None/Other |
| Ethnic groups | 98.1%Armenians, 1.2%Yazidis, 0.4%Russians, 0.3%other | 86.8%Georgians, 6.2%Azerbaijanis, 4.5%Armenians, 0.7%Russians, 2.1%other |
| GDP (nominal) | US$25.4 billion ($8,575 per capita) | US$33 billion ($8,825 per capita) |
| GDP (PPP) | $64.4 billion ($21,746 per capita)[7] | $94 billion ($24,348 per capita)[8] |
Armenia and Georgia have a long history of cultural and political relations. The interaction peaked in the Middle Ages when both nations engaged in prolific cultural dialogue and allied themselves against the neighboring Muslim empires. There were frequent intermarriages between Armenian and Georgian royal and noble families, and both ethnicities intermingled in several border areas.
This close association with Armenia brought upon the country an invasion (65 BC ) by the Roman generalPompey, who was then at war withMithradates VI of Pontus, and Armenia; but Rome did not establish her power permanently over Iberia. Nineteen years later, the Romans again marched (36 BC) on Iberia forcing KingPharnavaz II to join their campaign againstAlbania.[9]
During this time Armenia and Pontus were actively expanding at the expense of Rome, taking over its Eastern Mediterranean possessions.
However, the success of the anti-Roman alliance did not last long. As a result of the brilliant Roman campaigns of Pompey andLucullus from the west, and theParthian invasion from the south, Armenia lost a significant part of its conquests by 65 BC, devolving into a Roman-Parthian dependency. At the same time, theKingdom of Pontus was completely destroyed by the Romans and all its territory including Colchis were incorporated into theRoman Empire as her provinces.
The former Kingdom of Colchis became the Roman province ofLazicum ruled by Romanlegati. The following 600 years of Georgian history were marked by the struggle between Rome and Persia (Iran) includingParthians andSassanids who were fighting long wars against each other for the domination in the Middle East including Syria, Mesopotamia, Armenia,Albania, and Iberia.
In the late 4th century, Rome had to give up Albania and most of Armenia toSassanid Persia. The province of Lazicum was given a degree of autonomy that by the end of the century developed into full independence with the formation of a new Kingdom of Lazica-Egrisi on the territories of smaller principalities of the Zans, Svans, Apsyls, and Sanyghs. This new Western Georgian state survived more than 250 years until 562 when it was absorbed by theByzantine Empire.
While the Georgian kingdom of Colchis was administered as a Roman province,Caucasian Iberia freely accepted the Roman Imperial protection. A stone inscription discovered atMtskheta speaks of the 1st-century ruler Mihdrat I (AD 58–106) as "the friend of the Caesars" and the king "of the Roman-loving Iberians." EmperorVespasian fortified the ancient Mtskheta site of Arzami for the Iberian kings in 75 AD.
In the 2nd century AD, Iberia strengthened her position in the area, especially during the reign of KingPharsman II who achieved full independence from Rome and reconquered some of the previously lost territories from declining Armenia.
In the 3rd century AD, theLazi tribe came to dominate most of Colchis, establishing the kingdom ofLazica, locally known as Egrisi. Colchis was a scene of the protracted rivalry between theEastern Roman/Byzantine andSassanid empires, culminating in theLazic War from 542 to 562.[10]
With their status of "King of Kings" (Shahanshah),[11] Armenian kings authority also carried over to the neighboring states ofGeorgia,Caucasian Albania and several of the Arab emirates.[12]
The second half of the 11th century was marked by the strategically significant invasion of theSeljuq Turks, who by the end of the 1040s had succeeded in building a vast nomadic empire including most of Central Asia and Persia. In 1071, the Seljuq army destroyed the united Byzantine and Georgian forces in theBattle of Manzikert. By 1081, all of Armenia,Anatolia,Mesopotamia,Syria, and most of Georgia had been conquered and devastated by the Seljuqs. By the end of the 1080s, Georgians were outnumbered in the region by the invaders. The defeat of theBagratuni dynasty ended Christian leadership of Armenia for the next millennium.
The struggle against theSeljuq invaders in Georgia was led by the youngKing David IV Bagrationi (reigning 1089–1125). Georgians freed Shirvan and a large portion of Armenia. Thus in 1124 David also became the King ofArmenians, incorporating Northern Armenia into the lands of the Georgian Crown. In 1125 King David died, leaving Georgia with the status of strong regional power.
The temporary fall of the Byzantine Empire in 1204 to the Crusaders left Georgia as the strongest Christian state in the whole East Mediterranean area. Muslim power inGreater Armenia was seriously troubled by the resurgent Georgian monarchy. Many local nobles (nakharars) joined their efforts with theGeorgians, leading toliberation of several areas in northern Armenia, which was ruled, under the authority of the Georgian crown, by theMkhargrdzeli, a prominent Armeno-Georgian noble family.
The kingdom of Georgia flourished during the 10th to 12th centuries, and fell to theMongol invasions of Georgia by 1243, and after a brief reunion underGeorge V of Georgia to theTimurid Empire.
By 1490, Georgia was fragmented into a number of petty kingdoms and principalities, which throughout theEarly Modern period struggled to maintain their autonomy against Iranian (successiveSafavid,Afsharid andQajar dynasties) andOttoman domination until Georgia was finally annexed by theRussian Empire in 1801. Russian possession over Georgia got nominally finalised withQajar Iran in 1813 in theTreaty of Gulistan following Russia's victory in theRusso-Persian War (1804-1813).[13]Greater Armenia was from the early 16th century up to including the course of the 19th century was also, more dominantly even, divided between the rivalling neighboring Ottoman and successive Iranian dynasties. In the first half of the 19th century, after several centuries under its rule in the early modern era, Iran was forced to cede its last remaining territories in the Caucasus which included modern-day Armenia (also known asEastern Armenia) to Imperial Russia following its loss in theRusso-Persian War (1826-1828), which got ratified in the 1828Treaty of Turkmenchay.[13] Greater Armenia was now divided between theOttoman Empire and Russia.
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During theRussian Revolution, the provinces of theCaucasus seceded and formed their own federal state called theTranscaucasian Federation. Competing national interests and the war with theOttoman Empire led to the dissolution of the republic half a year later, in April 1918.
During the final stages of World War I, the Armenians and Georgians had been defending against the advance of the Ottoman Empire. In June 1918, in order to forestall an Ottoman advance onTiflis, the Georgian troops had occupied former districts ofTiflis Governorate, theLori Province which at the time had a 97% Armenian majority. After theArmistice of Mudros and the withdrawal of the Ottomans, the Georgian forces remained. GeorgianMenshevik parliamentarianIrakli Tsereteli offered that the Armenians would be safer from the Turks as Georgian citizens. The Georgians offered a quadripartite conference including Georgia, Armenia,Azerbaijan, and theMountainous Republic of the Northern Caucasus in order to resolve the issue which the Armenians rejected. In December 1918, the Georgians were confronting a rebellion chiefly in the village ofUzunlar in the Lori region. Within days, hostilities commenced between the two republics.[14]
TheGeorgian–Armenian War was a border war fought in 1918 between theDemocratic Republic of Georgia and theDemocratic Republic of Armenia over the parts of then disputed province ofLori.
From March 12, 1922, to December 5, 1936, Armenia and Georgia were a part of theTranscaucasian SFSR together with theAzerbaijan SSR. In 1936, the TSFSR was dissolved under Stalin's orders and the socialist republics of Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia were established instead.
In the Soviet Union,Armenians andGeorgians, along withRussians,Ukrainians,Belarusians,Germans, andJews were judged as "advanced" peoples, and were grouped together as Western nationalities.[15]
Nevertheless, as with various other ethnic minorities who lived in the Soviet Union under Stalin, tens of thousands of Armenians were executed and deported. In 1936,Lavrenty Beria and Stalin worked to deport Armenians toSiberia in an attempt to bring Armenia's population under 700,000 in order to justify an annexation into Georgia.[16][unreliable source?] Thousands of Armenians were forcibly exiled toAltai Krai in 1949.[17][18]
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On March 17, 1991, Armenia, along with the Baltics, Georgia andMoldova, boycotted aunion-wide referendum in which 78% of all voters voted for the retention of the Soviet Union in areformed form.[19]
Georgia declared independence on9 April 1991 and Armenia did the same on 21 September 1991 following the failedSoviet coup attempt in August. TheUnited States recognized the independence of both nations onDecember 25, 1991.
Armenian-Georgian relations in the post-independence period have been mixed but cooperative. The two states are both allied with the other one's adversaries (Armenia with Russia, Georgia withAzerbaijan and Turkey)[citation needed], but they are nevertheless obliged to maintain cooperative ties: the border blockades imposed by Turkey and Azerbaijan on Armenia makes Georgia (and, via a single route, Iran) the only possible exit and entry point for Armenian imports and exports.
Recent revelations indicate thatYerevan had taken steps to assure Tbilisi that it had Armenia's all-but-official support in the outbreak of the 2008 South Ossetian and Abkhazian conflict. Armenia offered itself as a safe haven for Georgians escaping the conflict, and at one point, temporarily housed at least 500 Georgian families escaping the war. To this day, Armenia has not recognized South Ossetia and Abkhazia as independent states. However, the establishment of diplomatic relations between Abkhazia, South Ossetia, and the separatist Republic of Artsakh has drawn criticism from the Georgian government, notably during PresidentSalome Zourabichvili's visit to Armenia in March 2019. Moreover, theArmenian Apostolic Church's decision to place Armenian churches in Abkhazia under the jurisdiction of its South Russian Eparchy instead of the Church's Eparchy of Georgia was rescinded after a meeting between President Zourabichvili andCatholicos Karekin II.[citation needed]
According to Wikileaks, however, Armenia's foreign diplomats grew increasingly frustrated with Tbilisi's inability to respond to calls or diplomatic cables from Yerevan.[20] Despite their reluctance to warmly embrace each other diplomatically, the differences between the two nations are more often highlighted by political rather than social or historical differences.
Positive steps have been taken to strengthen ties between the two nations. In January 2011, Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvilli paid an official visit to Armenia immediately after his initial visit to Washington. Both the Georgian and Armenian presidents seem to hold each other in high esteem, and Georgia's push to remove itself from the Russian sphere of influence in the Caucasus Region has translated to an increase of cooperation, positivity and productivity in relations with its immediate neighbors. Tbilisi recently made an effort to address the socioeconomic plight of the Georgian-Armenians living inJavakheti, a source of tension between the two nations, by building a main road that connects the region with Tbilisi as well as proposing new projects in the region, one of which involves the creation of a national park.
On 26 January 2024, Armenian prime ministerNikol Pashinyan congratulated Georgia for obtainingEU candidate status. "This is a historic event for Georgia and the entire region", Pashinyan said at a joint press conference held with his counterpart in Tbilisi.[21]
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