Against this backdrop, we are acting like idiots with our mouths open, insisting we must remain alone: “Hey, we won’t join anywhere on one leg, and our sovereignty is supreme.” This is not funny — it is anti-state.­

Iran has shifted its attention to the region. Their thinking is probably: “If we are dying, let’s take others down with us.” But this will cost them dearly. This is what conflictologist Paata Zakareishvili stated during an interview on PalitraNews's program “Day's Newsroom” while discussing ongoing processes in the Middle East.

According to him, Georgia vitally needs the NATO alliance.

“If something happens in the world, it’s happening around us. This poses a threat to us, but Georgia must clearly define where it stands and where it is positioned. As they say, standing on ‘two legs’ alone and relying on sovereignty won’t get us far. International law is shaken, and in this context, we need to seek alliances. NATO is right next to us, in the form of Turkey — this alliance is vitally necessary for us. In this alliance, we can be positioned with the Caucasus Mountains and the Black Sea — these two unique geo-strategic objects of importance. Also, the Azerbaijan-Turkey alliance has clearly emerged, which is why Azerbaijan boldly speaks to Russia and Iran. We have heard harsh statements from Azerbaijan toward Iran. It undoubtedly knows that drones were launched from Iranian territory toward the Nakhchivan region. A drone doesn’t accidentally fall at an airport. Apparently, someone decided to strike that location. Iran is showing that it is resilient and not as vulnerable as others thought. In Iran, there are no longer political and religious heads; against this backdrop, all energy has shifted downward — decisions are being made in various places. There is no longer a single command issuer; roles are distributed so that decisions are made on the ground. The strike on Nakhchivan was decided by one of the leaders of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. They concluded: ‘We can’t destroy Israel — they are far away and have a strong Iron Dome — so let’s destroy territories that are not so heavily protected, where there are U.S. embassies and infrastructure.’ Iran has shifted its attention to the region; their thinking is probably: ‘If we are dying, let’s drag others along.’ This will cost them dearly. They also struck Turkey, though this is not yet confirmed, but Iran apologized. However, they did not do the same with Azerbaijan. Apparently, Azerbaijan knows that the drones were launched from Iran. Against this backdrop, we are acting like fools with our mouths open, insisting we must remain alone: ‘Hey, we won’t join anywhere on one leg, and our sovereignty is supreme.’ This is not funny — it is anti-state.

As for the Georgian side issuing a statement, we are dependent on Azerbaijan, so they were forced to do it. Georgian politics is so paralyzed and vaporized that even showing such signs of vitality is already laughable and means nothing,” — stated Paata Zakareishvili.

According to Zakareishvili, Iran must give Azerbaijan a response — that is, apologize for the drones falling in Nakhchivan. Otherwise, as Paata Zakareishvili says, Azerbaijan might bomb Iranian territories, thereby joining the Israel-U.S. alliance through this step.

“Azerbaijan is ready for any response. If there is no response from Iran — that is, an apology — it might be satisfied with that. But to maintain its dominant role in the region, Azerbaijan must bomb something and join the Israel-U.S. alliance, in which, officially, no other state has joined besides them. If anyone gets involved, it would be to protect damaged countries. But bombing Iran does not suit Azerbaijan, because many Azerbaijanis live in Iran. Iran must give a clear response in the form of an apology,” — stated Paata Zakareishvili.

According to him, it is not excluded that Israel and the U.S. will send units into Iran and destroy the headquarters of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to demonstrate that they are capable of doing this.

“Israel does not have an army large enough to enter Iran — only the U.S. does. It is not excluded that U.S. and Israeli special forces units will enter and completely blow up the headquarters of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to let others know: ‘We are capable of this too.’ It has become clear that destroying Iran’s top figures did not yield results, because Iran is not Venezuela. The second phase for Israel and the U.S. will be to find where the missile launch points are in Iran and destroy them, because the launch devices and missiles are the main thing — you can have as much scrap as you want. Also, to find where nuclear material is stored and how possible it is to remove it.

There are up to 300 ayatollahs in the world; the majority of them must elect Iran’s Supreme Leader. Most of them are against the form of governance in Iran, and for them it is unacceptable that religion governs the state. If they find some ayatollah, he should go for reforms — abolish the Assembly of Experts and give parliament and the president the means to manage the situation. In ten years, we might get an exemplary democratic Islamic state,” — stated Paata Zakareishvili.

In the political scientist’s opinion, the purpose of Israel launching a military operation in Lebanon is to destroy the dispersed “metastases” of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

“One of Iran’s metastases was in Lebanon, and yesterday the Lebanese government banned the presence of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on Lebanese territory. Israel is observing that it itself lacks the capacity to deal with Iran and is trying to destroy its metastases. Israel cannot create a comfortable zone; it remains under suspicion by the Arab world. These bombs cost Israel 3 billion daily, which is a challenge for them. In parallel, this war is not popular in the U.S., and Trump has elections. A new generation is coming in the U.S. for whom Israel is not popular. Taking these factors into account, in 15 years we might see a new reality in the Middle East. In Shiism, the most famous leader is Ali al-Sistani, who is in Najaf, Iraq. He is not concerned with the state; he might say: appoint this person in Iran, and he will be appointed — Trump cannot say that. Ali al-Sistani should say that this person will be a normal ayatollah in Iran, and perhaps this ayatollah-Gorbachev will carry out the reforms that Iran needs,” — stated Paata Zakareishvili.