BHA Webinar Series (Zoom)
David Darchiashvili (Ilia State University, Tbilisi)
Date & Hour: September 30 (Wednesday), 15:00 CET / 16:00 EET
Moderator: Timothy French
Technical assistance: timothymfrench@yahoo.com
Zoom link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/84448696274
Webinar ID: 844 4869 6274
Through generations, Geopolitics was a controversial concept and remains as such. Not completely embracing contemporary critical geopolitics, my presentation stands on its premise, as well as on contemporary border studies approach that spatiality in politics and international relations is by and large socially constructed. Hence, definition of the places of the particular countries or regions is contingent, fluid, historical. Whether the Caucasus and Georgia in it can be regarded as a part of the Central-Eastern European space, which in itself underwent many redefinitions, is a matter of not physical geography (though so called territorial capital matters), but political, cultural and material will.
Not going deep into the ancient and medieval history, suffice to say that in modern times Georgia twice approximated European civilisation. Firstly, it started with the emergence of Georgian nationalism, emanating in declaration of independence in 1918 quite in line with the western standards. Though this experiment, eloquently called by Stephen Jones “Socialism in Georgian Colours” lasted less than three years. After the break-up of Soviet totalitarianism with Georgia as its core actor, the nation acquired the second chance of Europeanisation. Moving through years-long turmoil, eventually the country received the invitation to join the EU. Paradoxically as it may look from the first glance, this very moment Georgian government started not approximation but distancing from the Europe generally and its central-eastern part, where the most of the Georgian traditional friends were concentrated, particularly. Is it illogical deviation from the historical path? Has it some rationale? Will there be a third chance for Georgia? During the presentation, I will attempt to formulate certain assumptions regarding this questions.