Pankisi Gorge: a problem for Russia or Georgia?

52
26 January Sergey Lavrov made a statement that ISIL militants in the Pankisi Gorge are undergoing training, training and rest "after the war". And it is precisely this problem that caused the abolition of the visa-free regime with Georgia.



However, Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili stated that the government of the country fully controls Pankisi, and there are no terrorist risks there. I would like to ask, and what risks exist?

The existence of a militant base in the Pankisi Gorge of Georgia has long been known. Even the Georgian media write about this. No one makes a special secret from the fact that the ISIL militants quite calmly enter themselves, as they do at home, into the territory of Georgia.

And in the middle of last year, one of the Syrian army generals, Walid Abaz, reported on the existence of an IG military base on the territory of the Pankisi Gorge. According to him, Chechen fighters in Georgia are encouraged to join the IG, because they have experience of military operations, and the base itself allegedly enjoys the full support of Tbilisi.

If you dig around well, you can remember that as early as September 2014, the former NATO Secretary General Rasmussen announced the possibility of creating a regional training center in Georgia for training moderate Syrian opposition. The initiative to open the camp was then made by Tbilisi.

Actually, what to open? Signboard change, nothing more. Many remember very well who arranged parties in this gorge in not too distant times.

It is clear that many people did not like this proposal in Russia, they say, at one time Chechen militants were preparing in the Pankisi Gorge, and now what, also Syrian? Moreover, moderate oppositionists often side with the Islamists. Then these plans seemed to be abandoned, however, the initiative was launched.

According to experts, now in the Pankisi Gorge, the number of patrol outfits has increased, sometimes arrests of local residents are held on suspicion of links with IS. However, all this is implemented at the local level. Local police arrest local residents "on suspicion." And then, of course, released, for lack of evidence.

Reports, of course, are sculpted regularly. There is visibility of work, there are documents, there is nothing to be afraid of. Everything's under control.

But for some reason in neighboring South Ossetia they do not share such rosy confidence of the Georgian authorities. Perhaps it is because while local police successfully drive local residents, others, who are not at all local, calmly clean up the former camps of Chechen militants and lick their wounds there. I do not presume to judge, but it is obvious that from South Ossetia you can see better. And there is cause for concern.

It is known that the Caucasus is quite in the “zone of interests” of ISIS. And, having received a support base with the explicit approval of the Georgian authorities, the ISIL militants will not only be able to use it as a rest home. And start from there the construction of your “caliphate”.

As for the Pankisi Gorge itself, the situation there is quite complicated in the sense that the area is not regularly monitored by either the Georgian authorities or the international community. Therefore, it is impossible to talk about any specific numbers of those who returned or arrived from the Middle East.

But the fact that they are there, and in sufficient quantities to cause some concern, no doubt. At least, South Ossetian guards say this for a reason. This is not just their bread, it is the safety of their homes.

The fact that the militants themselves are capable of infiltrating through the territory of Turkey does not seem to arise. Even if the Turkish and Georgian special services do not specifically help them, this does not mean that there is no such movement. The Islamists have established contacts there too well, and how well the border of Georgia is guarded is another question. To which there is no immediate response. We will start from the fact that, according to Georgian standards, the border is guarded reliably. So, everyone will pass.

Of course, in South Ossetia, now breathing is somewhat easier than before. In terms of security. For peace of mind does not guarantee a battalion of peacekeepers with a light rifle weaponsand a full-fledged 4 Guards military base. 4 000 is a man of personnel, plus “U points”, plus “Grads” and other components that can cool anyone's passion. We can assume that South Ossetia can sleep peacefully.

The whole further problem is not only in South Ossetia. For the guerrilla war, which may well “set on fire” the region (and it would be strange if the gun hanging on the stage of Pankisi did not fire) would hook not only Ossetia. Even more than that, Ossetia will be hooked to a lesser degree, for the presence of a Russian military base is taking place.

And then there is Armenia and Abkhazia. There seems to be an autonomous republic within Georgia, Adjara, about which it is difficult to unequivocally tell whose it is more Georgian or Turkish. At least, the Turks are mastering Ajaria quite actively. For this moment, we should say a special thank you to the Ukrainian Misha Saakashvili, who, when he was president, massively handed out Georgian citizenship to overtly extremist Turkish bottoms.

Of course, Ajaria and all that is around it is, first of all, Georgia’s headache. But, as practice shows, they set fire to some, and it is necessary to extinguish and rake completely different. Of course, having arranged a warm welcome to the "poor refugees" from the countries of the Middle East, the Georgian authorities do not want any undue tension in the region. And they are guided solely by taking care of their neighbor in faith and spirit.

Although, what they have in common in faith and spirituality is also not a simple question. As well as the arguments about the hospitality of the Georgian people as a historical phenomenon. August 2008 in those parts is not all forgotten.

In any case, for now, it is not worth shouting to the whole world that Georgia is trying to complicate the situation in the region. So far, there is no iron evidence that the Georgian authorities are behind the arrangement of "rest houses" for Arab militants. But you shouldn’t forget about it either, because we don’t have to rake anyway. So, too, historically.
Our news channels

Subscribe and stay up to date with the latest news and the most important events of the day.

52 comments
Information
Dear reader, to leave comments on the publication, you must sign in.
  1. +10
    3 February 2016 06: 06
    Yes, I see, I see. Itches with a neighbor, but our problem. We will decide. Maybe in line, but maybe without.
    1. +5
      3 February 2016 06: 24
      On January 26, Sergei Lavrov made a statement that ISIS fighters are undergoing training, training and rest in the Pankisi Gorge "after the deeds of the warriors." And it was this problem that caused the abolition of the visa-free regime with Georgia.
      However, Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili said that the government completely controls Pankisi, and there are no terrorist risks there.

      Once the statement was made by Lavrov, then there really is something in the gorge!
      But since the prime minister of Georgia said that no terrorist risks exist there,
      then the result is that who are training terrorists ?!
      One plus one equals - Georgia and its star-striped friends!
      1. +6
        3 February 2016 07: 25
        And this is a tradition for Wahhabism-afflicted brains - to arrange a picnic in the Pankisi Gorge before meeting with Allah
        Places there in the gorge are good, well-fed. VKS knows the way there well.
        1. -15
          3 February 2016 08: 54
          Quote: Mik13
          No one makes a special secret from the fact that ISIS fighters quite calmly go into their territory, like to their home.

          It is strange to accuse Georgia of aiding the Islamic State. One could be accused of complicity in the militants of the Caucasian liberation movements. But ISIS is already too much. Georgia Christian country
          1. +5
            3 February 2016 09: 22
            Quote: Voice of the Mind
            Quote: Mik13
            No one makes a special secret from the fact that ISIS fighters quite calmly go into their territory, like to their home.

            It is strange to accuse Georgia of aiding the Islamic State. One could be accused of complicity in the militants of the Caucasian liberation movements. But ISIS is already too much. Georgia Christian country

            ... This did not prevent the Georgians from firing hail from the sleeping city !! That’s the guardians of morality ... they dance to the tune of the Americans, they dream of NATO ..
            1. +8
              3 February 2016 10: 37
              Georgians have forgotten to whom they owe their physical existence, if not for Russia, then in our time it would be the territory of Turkey, and the nationality of "Georgians", like mammoths did not exist
              1. 0
                4 February 2016 18: 01
                tavarish beck ,, sperva pochitai istoriu, xotiabi iz dvux raznix istochnikov ...
          2. +7
            3 February 2016 09: 35
            It is strange to accuse Georgia of aiding the Islamic State. One could be accused of complicity in the militants of the Caucasian liberation movements. But ISIS is already too much. Georgia Christian country

            This "Christian country" has recently set up camps for rest, treatment and training of Chechen fighters in the Pankisi Gorge.
          3. +1
            3 February 2016 09: 56
            Quote: Voice of the Mind
            Quote: Mik13
            No one makes a special secret from the fact that ISIS fighters quite calmly go into their territory, like to their home.

            It is strange to accuse Georgia of aiding the Islamic State. One could be accused of complicity in the militants of the Caucasian liberation movements. But ISIS is already too much. Georgia Christian country

            You have a mistake in quoting - correct. I did not write it.
          4. +1
            3 February 2016 12: 39
            Quote: Voice of Mind
            . Georgia Christian country


            Tomorrow the word "WAS" will be added to this phrase.
            She (Georgia-2) seeks EU membership and Muslim migrants seek EU membership. There is an overabundance in the central EU countries, so that migrant flows are redirected to non-European countries (such as Bulgaria, Romania, the Baltic states, and then Georgia and Ukraine). So in Georgiistan soon instead of churches there will be minarets with muezzins, and Pankissi will be declared the capital of Daesh in the Caucasus.
          5. +1
            3 February 2016 13: 27
            Well, yes, and Saakashvili is a true Christian ...
          6. +1
            3 February 2016 14: 39
            Georgia-Christian and the USA- also seem to be, yes, there is still Ukraine- purely Christian
            1. 0
              4 February 2016 18: 03
              a kakimi vi budete mileishii?
          7. 0
            4 February 2016 15: 25
            a poor country with thieving and greedy officials ... yes they will support anything for grandmas.
            1. 0
              4 February 2016 18: 03
              eto vi o svoei country?
    2. +5
      3 February 2016 06: 46
      The neighbor probably has a short memory, and then there were several kilometers left to Tbilisi.
      1. +6
        3 February 2016 08: 24
        Quote: Alexander 3
        The neighbor probably has a short memory, and then there were several kilometers left to Tbilisi.

        According to the Georgian version, they won that war, and this is what they teach their youth! We must pay tribute to the fact that we have not brought the military company to its logical conclusion. When there were several kilometers to Tbilisi, Russia, to please the West, suddenly stopped the Russian troops! It was a huge gift to the West, the Americans were very scared, they were sure that there would be a change of power in Georgia, and Georgia would leave the US sphere of influence! Then, Sarkozy urgently flew to Moscow and persuaded Medvedev not to get into Georgia. The President, Medvedev, called the surrender of positions on Georgia in favor of the West, the new term Operation Compulsion to Peace. Therefore, the West did not announce sanctions to Russia in 2008. And, until Tbilisi was only a few kilometers ...
        1. +3
          3 February 2016 10: 12
          I remember reading that the Georgians at that time were morally prepared, that Russia was occupying all of Georgia.
        2. -5
          3 February 2016 15: 05
          Quote: Stas157
          According to the Georgian version, they won that war, and this is what their youth is teaching!

          funny) who told you that?
          Quote: Stas157
          We must pay tribute to the fact that we have not brought the military company to its logical conclusion. When there were several kilometers to Tbilisi, Russia, to please the West, suddenly stopped the Russian troops! It was a huge gift to the West, the Americans were very scared, they were sure that there would be a change of power in Georgia, and Georgia would leave the US sphere of influence! Then, Sarkozy urgently flew to Moscow and persuaded Medvedev not to get into Georgia. The President, Medvedev, called the surrender of positions on Georgia in favor of the West, the new term Operation Compulsion to Peace. Therefore, the West did not announce sanctions to Russia in 2008. And, until Tbilisi was only a few kilometers ...

          ) Well, excuse me, Tbilisi would you take for 2-3 weeks and how many of your soldiers would die and how many of our soldiers and civilians? Do you think the US and Turkey would allow this? or Azerbaijan? about the name Forcing Peace https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-SFgeAu1Qnk
          here is the answer)
          1. +2
            3 February 2016 18: 07
            It is loudly said "You would take Tbilisi". There would even be no need to enter there. Pro-American puppets would pack their bags and, along with the military leadership, would fly to the West. All that would be needed is a few mobile groups to assist the Georgian opposition oriented towards an alliance with Russia. Why is that? - Because PANIC! A terrible thing.
            1. -1
              3 February 2016 18: 27
              Quote: andrew42
              It is loudly said "You would take Tbilisi". There would even be no need to enter there. Pro-American puppets would pack their bags and, along with the military leadership, would fly to the West. All that would be needed is a few mobile groups to assist the Georgian opposition oriented towards an alliance with Russia. Why is that? - Because PANIC! A terrible thing.

              why then retreated? The Georgian opposition on 8-9 Augusta stated that they support the government and the country. On the 2008 year your army is not as good as now
              1. +3
                3 February 2016 19: 07
                If Russia were completely ruled by the national elite, then no one would have retreated. In Russia, too, not everything is simple at the top, especially since it was in 2008. But nobody really needs to "attach" your Georgia. The main thing is that there should be no NATO nest and no bases of terrorist mercenaries. The rest - by yourself, by yourself. It’s time to get used to independence, and not gawk around who to lie under. Maybe return the monarchy to Georgia? Tsar George the 12th probably had some sane distant descendants somewhere?
                1. 0
                  4 February 2016 08: 31
                  Well, sorry. But we choose NATO and America. Yes you will join Georgia and you can’t, but in 2008, what Putin planned did and thus answered for Kosovo
    3. +2
      3 February 2016 06: 56
      Exactly .. "In turn, sons of bitches, in turn .." Bulgakov "Heart of a Dog".
    4. +8
      3 February 2016 07: 39
      It was necessary to solve for a long time, with Edik Shevarnadze it was necessary to decide, well, or Edika to decide, then to solve with Mishako, etc. Timeliness is the main value in matters of national security.
      Now we chew snot with Ukraine. How many training camps will there be in 5 years?
  2. +3
    3 February 2016 06: 15
    The Pankisi gorge ... I immediately remembered the good wine "Alazani Valley", now there will be an association with DAISH ... wherever these m.a.zi appear, all good things disappear.
  3. +3
    3 February 2016 06: 28
    And the Georgians themselves are not afraid to get a piece of the Caliphate on their land?
    1. +5
      3 February 2016 06: 46
      And the Georgians themselves are not afraid to get a piece of the Caliphate on their land?


      And no one will ask them. Since their power is weak, and they themselves are cowardly. Here is every rabble and a handful in their territories and will continue to gather in a handful until it reaches a critical point. And when it comes, perhaps a "lunar landscape" will be made from this gorge. But of course not Georgians will do it.
    2. +10
      3 February 2016 07: 05
      Be afraid. But they are even more afraid of touching the Kists (Chechens) living there. And about the Caliphate I will say this. There (in the Pankisi gorge) there is not a single functioning Church for a long time - only mosques. And those who called for a "gazzavat" with Russia rule. But the question “whose problem is this: Georgia or Russia?” Is open (it may turn out to be theirs as well as ours). Everything is complicated and you cannot say in a nutshell.
  4. +5
    3 February 2016 06: 37
    caring for your neighbor in faith and spirit.As far as I know, the Georgians are Orthodox, and the Turks and Syrian fighters are Muslims. There are more common interests and mostly monetary ones!
  5. +1
    3 February 2016 06: 40
    Quote: Nikolay71
    And the Georgians themselves are not afraid to get a piece of the Caliphate on their land?


    rather, it will be, for the exit only one direction will remain.
  6. +3
    3 February 2016 06: 45
    People set fire to their house for two cents of compensation. Do not expect common sense from them.
  7. +1
    3 February 2016 06: 46
    This is also a splinter for us at the fifth point, because we are not going to bomb the gorge! And this is work for our special services.
  8. +6
    3 February 2016 07: 01
    The weak politician Medvedev, of course, did a stupid thing without taking the capital of Georgia. But now the most important thing is if the terrorists get orders to slaughter Georgians, Azerbaijanis, Uzbeks, Ukrainians, and so on, the main thing is not to interfere with Russia. Russia doesn’t have to make historical mistakes, it’s not necessary to defend the ungrateful and corrupt republics of the former USSR.
    1. 0
      3 February 2016 18: 24
      There it was not necessary to take the capital. It was necessary to catch Mishiko with his codla, including in the capital. And to take and hold is a thankless task. The fate of General Lazarev in 1800 is proof of this.
  9. +2
    3 February 2016 07: 21
    Articles in the Georgian media are already appearing on the topic: Isn’t it time for us to turn to Russia ... with the EU they are deceiving us, with NATO, too ... yes and Uncle Sam ... somehow it leads us to humiliate our national pride .. and the Turks are rude .. will they not arrange a massacre for us again .. But they will not arrange and intercede ...
    1. +3
      3 February 2016 07: 52
      Well, yes, there will be no "friendly bayonets"
  10. +2
    3 February 2016 08: 21
    Georgians have always been defectors, and if not for the Ottoman Empire, they would not have come to the Tsar. And would run from one to another, for the benefit ....
    1. 0
      3 February 2016 19: 19
      Yes, not that completely deserters. Georgia as such did not exist in the 18th century. Kakheti & Kartli (in the east), Megreli, Svaneti, the Imeretian kingdom as much (!) - that was. Plus, even in the family of Georgian kings, there is a constant struggle for power between brothers and nephews. While one negotiates with Russia, the second brings the mountaineers, the third looks at the Turks. And everyone expects that then kaaak will reign, but kaak will beat the former patrons! Like smarter than all the cunning. The rulers of Kakheti and Kartli were never able to put together a single state. Well, how could it be "accepted" as a vassalage if it is ready to fall apart at any moment as soon as the Russian battalion leaves Tiflis? Maybe Knorring was right in those conditions. One way is to the province. No vassal "kingdoms". So at least the bases were worn out in the bud.
    2. 0
      4 February 2016 18: 12
      vidno vi ochen prasveshionni chelovek .. osobenno vistorii
  11. +5
    3 February 2016 08: 55
    The Pankisi Gorge is located in the Akhmeta municipality of Georgia in the upper reaches of the Alazani River. The gorge runs 60 km parallel to the Georgian-Russian border, and is separated from it by a mountain range. The gorge is 28 kilometers long and about five wide.
  12. +3
    3 February 2016 10: 36
    The last Georgian police post is in Matani, then they are on their own. Five years ago, Kistins periodically staged a show - Wahi squeezed and burned mosques from traditionalists
  13. 0
    3 February 2016 11: 23
    Well, we are waiting for "guests" on our territory. Let Kadyrov show what a "patriot" he is, keeping the border there.
  14. 0
    3 February 2016 11: 44
    So far, there is no hard evidence that the Georgian authorities are behind the arrangement of "rest homes" for Arab militants.

    And what, for the authorities there is some difference between "organized" and "did not notice (closed his eyes)"?
    In the first case, active participation, in the second passive, but also participation. How do you imagine organizing a serious training base without the knowledge of the authorities?
    That is what I did not expect from the author, so it is such a reverence for political correctness.
  15. +2
    3 February 2016 12: 09
    "" "" In any case, now it is not worth shouting to the whole world that Georgia seeks to complicate the situation in the region. So far there is no iron evidence that the Georgian authorities are behind the arrangement of "rest homes" for Arab militants.
    The fact that the American side reacted to Lavrov’s statement about the existence of the Daesh base in Georgia almost immediately with a refutation speaks in favor of the fact that it has a place to be there.
    Another question is that Yanukovych also pretended not to notice the "right sector", which knocked him off the throne. So Tbilisi will finish badly, either from its bearded ones, or it will receive from Russia for the protection of the bearded ones, but it will definitely get it.
    1. 0
      4 February 2016 18: 17
      niriai, tavarish nirobski, niriai
  16. +1
    3 February 2016 12: 47
    in the middle of last year, one of the Syrian army generals Valid Abaz announced the existence of an IS military base on the territory of the Pankisi Gorge. According to him, Chechen fighters in Georgia are encouraged to join the IG, as they have experience in military operations, and the base itself allegedly enjoys the full support of Tbilisi


    They act according to the principle: "Let my barn burn down, if only the neighbor's cow dies."
  17. +1
    3 February 2016 14: 00
    It seems that this gorge has long become a sweet place for all "friends" of Georgia, regardless of faith and other "little things".
  18. 0
    3 February 2016 19: 23
    Well, that opened on time.
  19. 0
    3 February 2016 19: 36
    The United States is beneficial for Russia to create problems, so they decided to ask Georgia not to touch ISIS. After all, Russia will have to rake it, and terrorist attacks are easier to arrange.
  20. +1
    3 February 2016 22: 19
    Taking into account the latest anti-Russian statements by the Georgian leadership, it is time again to collect the Georgian diaspora and send it back to its historical homeland.
    1. +1
      4 February 2016 18: 18
      a kakix eto antirasiskix?
  21. 0
    3 February 2016 23: 06
    burn out with napalm and white phosphorus.
  22. +1
    4 February 2016 12: 36
    Once, airplanes without identification marks have already hit the gorge with vacuum bombs. Perhaps repetition will become necessary. Georgia itself does not have much resources for this. And there is a risk that this will provoke terrorist attacks against them too, which the authorities naturally do not want to allow. So someone else should help with this ...

"Right Sector" (banned in Russia), "Ukrainian Insurgent Army" (UPA) (banned in Russia), ISIS (banned in Russia), "Jabhat Fatah al-Sham" formerly "Jabhat al-Nusra" (banned in Russia) , Taliban (banned in Russia), Al-Qaeda (banned in Russia), Anti-Corruption Foundation (banned in Russia), Navalny Headquarters (banned in Russia), Facebook (banned in Russia), Instagram (banned in Russia), Meta (banned in Russia), Misanthropic Division (banned in Russia), Azov (banned in Russia), Muslim Brotherhood (banned in Russia), Aum Shinrikyo (banned in Russia), AUE (banned in Russia), UNA-UNSO (banned in Russia), Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People (banned in Russia), Legion “Freedom of Russia” (armed formation, recognized as terrorist in the Russian Federation and banned)

“Non-profit organizations, unregistered public associations or individuals performing the functions of a foreign agent,” as well as media outlets performing the functions of a foreign agent: “Medusa”; "Voice of America"; "Realities"; "Present time"; "Radio Freedom"; Ponomarev; Savitskaya; Markelov; Kamalyagin; Apakhonchich; Makarevich; Dud; Gordon; Zhdanov; Medvedev; Fedorov; "Owl"; "Alliance of Doctors"; "RKK" "Levada Center"; "Memorial"; "Voice"; "Person and law"; "Rain"; "Mediazone"; "Deutsche Welle"; QMS "Caucasian Knot"; "Insider"; "New Newspaper"