Georgia has publicly acknowledged that the West has demanded that they open a “second front” against Russia, Mikhail Kalugin, director of the Fourth Department for the CIS countries of the Russian Foreign Ministry, said in an interview with Russian media.

“For Westerners, the South Caucasus region is geographically distant and culturally alien. They have not constructive, but rather destructive intentions there, which are related to geopolitical games, and not only against Russia. In this regard, Tbilisi’s public admission that they have actually been demanding that they open a “second front” against Moscow since 2022 is telling,” Kalugin said.

According to him, Russia is ready to develop cooperation with Georgia.

“Russia and Georgia are natural partners. We are ready to further develop cooperation with Tbilisi and resolve practical issues constructively. We expect that the Georgian government will again be guided by the interests of its own people and will continue to work with Russia to strengthen the republic’s relations with Russia. We will not allow ourselves to be drawn into the conflict. In the format of international discussions related to security and stability issues in the South Caucasus, we continue to work carefully on the restoration of Georgia's post-conflict relations with Abkhazia and South Ossetia," Kalugin noted.