UPCOMING EVENT: 4.20.17 Russia’s Hybrid War on Georgia: 2008 and Beyond – Washington, D.C., IERES at The George Washington University
Subject: Upcoming Event: 4.20.17 Russia’s Hybrid War on Georgia: 2008 and Beyond
Date: Thu, 13 Apr 2017 14:31:30 -0400 (EDT)
From: IERES, GW Elliott School <ieresgwu@gwu.edu>
Russia’s Hybrid War on Georgia:
2008 and Beyond
Ambassador Vasil Sikharulidze, Visiting Fulbright Scholar, IERES
In August 2008, Russian armed forces invaded Georgia in the first open military invasion of another sovereign nation by the Kremlin since the end of the Cold War. Even though the invasion did not accomplish the Kremlin’s objective of regime change in Georgia, after nine years, in violation of the ceasefire agreement, Russia continues to occupy two Georgian provinces of the Abkhazia and Tskhinvali Region. The 2008 war can be considered one of the stages of the hybrid war Russia is waging to assert its influence over the region and beyond. Alongside the use of military and special services, this hybrid war includes economic, financial, energy, and informational warfare components. The course of developments before the invasion, the response fromthe international community, the aftermath of the conflict, and its implications carry valuable lessons for better understanding modern hybrid warfare, as well as the nature of threats to stability and security in Europe.
Ambassador Vasil Sikharulidze holds a Masters Degree in Public Administration from Harvard University and an MD in Psychiatry from Tbilisi State Medical University. Hehas worked in public service for 17 years and has held such high-ranking positions as Minister of Defence of Georgia (December 2008 – August 2009); Ambassador of Georgia to the United States, Canada and Mexico (December 2005 – December 2008); Deputy Minister of Defence and Undersecretary of the National Security Council of Georgia; Deputy Head of the Georgian Mission to NATO; and Head of the NATO Division in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia. He was part of the Georgian NATO-integration policy team in 2000-2006, as well as the negotiation team for Russian base withdrawals in 2004-2005. Since September 2011, he has worked as Chairman of the Atlantic Council of Georgia. Ambassador Sikharulidze is also a lecturer at the Georgian Institute of Public Affairs and Ilia University, Tbilisi.
Thursday, April 20, 2017
12:00 pm – 1:30 pm, Voesar Conference Room
1957 E St. NW, Suite 412
Please RSVP at go.gwu.edu/sikharulidze
/This event is on the record./
The Institute for European, Russian and Eurasian Studies (IERES)
Elliott School of International Affairs, George Washington University
1957 E Street, NW / Suite 412 / Washington, DC 20052
Tel (202) 994-6340 / Fax (202) 994-5436 / Email ieresgwu@gwu.edu
