Overview

The South Caucasus is the key strategic region between the Black Sea and Caspian Sea and the regional powers of Iran, Turkey and Russia and is the land bridge between Asia and Europe with vital hydrocarbon routes to international markets. This volume examines the resulting geopolitical positioning of Georgia, a pivotal state and lynchpin of the region, illustrating how and why Georgia's foreign policy is 'multi-vectored', facing potential challenges from Russia, int ernal and external nationalisms, the possible break-up of the European project and EU support and uncertainty over the US commitment to the traditional liberal international order.

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Reviews

Georgia's dilemma remains the tension between its identity and its security: how to realise its dominant Western orientation and integrate further into Euro-Atlantic structures, without risking its precarious security and veering into another fateful clash with Russian power. This incisive, nuanced and well-structured collection by Georgian and Western scholars explores this puzzle and offers cautious optimism. It is far more than just a go-to study to explain foreign policy flux in the South Caucasus. It should be read by all academics and practitioners seeking to understand how the foreign policy options of small states like Georgia are not simply tied to their geography. --Roy Allison, Oxford University, UK At a time when Georgia stands at a crossroads, this volume offers the first comprehensive analysis of the country's foreign policy. It brings together an excellent group of scholars to illuminate the complex set of challenges and opportunities confronting Georgia. German, Kakachia and the contributors to this volume masterfully demonstrate that small states are not just objects of great powers' rivalries, but also subjects in their own right. This book provides both a refreshing interpretation of small states' foreign policy and insights into the array of policy options at their disposal. As such, it will be an important reference point for students, scholars and practitioners alike. --Laure Delcour, Associate Professor in International Relations and EU Studies, University Sorbonne Nouvelle, France This volume, examining every nook and cranny of the Georgian foreign policy arena, offers a master-class on the foreign policy of small states. It is essential reading for those wanting to understand the nexus of regional aspirations that undergird the geopolitics of South Caucasus. German, Jones, and Kakachia have brought together authors of extraordinary insight and expertise, who collectively provide a multi-layered examination of Georgia's role in the world and the decisions - both costly and beneficial -- its leadership have made along the way. --Julie A. George, Queens College and the Graduate Center, City University of New York, USA

Author Information

Tracey German is a Reader in the Defence Studies Department at King's College London, UK. She is an associate fellow at RUSI. Kornely Kakachia is Associate Professor of Political Science at Ivane Javakishvili Tbilisi State University, Georgia, and Director of the Tbilisi-based Institute of Politics. Stephen Jones is Professor of Russian Studies at Mount Holyoke College, USA. He is an expert on post-communist societies in the former Soviet Union and Eastern Europe. Jones has briefed the U.S. Department of State on a regular basis, as well as a number of U.S. ambassadors to Georgia.

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