The Defense and Security, the Legal Issues, and the Human Rights and Civil Integration Committees heard the report by the State Security Service for 2020, introduced by the SSS First Deputy Director, Aleksi Batiashvili.

The Chair of the Defense Committee, Irakli Beraia noted the importance of the report: “It is the activity included in our oversight function and we on annual basis hear the reports. The report introduced today is an interesting document providing the details of the threats and challenges our country encounters and overviews the activity of the Security Service for neutralization of the threats. Within the Committee and the Trust Group, we closely cooperate with the Security Service and they, based on our inquiry, provide us with information necessary for our oversight activity. Thus, our cooperation is productive”.

The reporter, A. Batiashvili started his report with the threats and challenges, stressing the situation on the occupied territories and the threats in 2020 still were related to the occupation of Abkhazia and Tskhinvali region by Russia.

“The official Moscow kept the actual annexation policy of the Georgian territories, isolation of the occupied regions from the central authority and alienation of the population on both sides of the occupation line. In this context, it is noteworthy that on November 21, 2020, Russia “approved” the so-called uniform social and economic area formation program with Abkhazia. At that, it includes the simplified procedures for obtaining the so-called Abkhazian citizenship for the Russian citizens and “alienation” of the strategic objects and real property thereto. The direct threat of annexation in regards with the occupied Tskhinvali was also a threat in 2020 as the de-facto authority of Tskhinvali openly supports the unification with Russia”.

The Russian occupation forces and military equipment illegally deployed in the occupied territories damage the security milieu and pose the threat and international challenge for the region.

The reporter overviewed the domestic political challenges, economic and social situation in the occupied territories noting that against the pandemic, the so-called healthcare system of the occupied regions appeared totally dependent on Russian finances.

He dwelt on the illegal activities of the occupation forces and hybrid war, directed to discriminate the state institutions and trigger nihilism and pessimism in society. “The occupation regime sentenced the illegally detained Georgian citizens with long-term imprisonment. In this context, it is noteworthy to mention Zaza Gakheladze and Irakli Bebua, to which the occupation regime applied a particularly unfair and inhuman approach”.

The reporter dwelt on the bordering process and noted that in 2020, the SSS detected 16 cases of illegal bordering in occupied Abkhazia and 60 cases in the occupied Tskhinvali region. The destructive approaches of the occupation forces blocked the so-called check-points, which aggravated the situation in Gali and Akhalgori.

He stressed the importance of the engagement of the international mechanisms and stated that the request for the immediate release of the Georgian citizens at the Geneva Talks and meetings, where the SSS representatives introduced all incidents on the occupied territories.

Speaking about state security and counter-intelligence, he stated that in 2020, the SSS started an investigation on 12 criminal cases and issued the guilty sentence to 7 persons, while the remaining 9 cases are pending.

As to the security situation in the region, he emphasized the Azerbaijan-Armenia confrontation in 2020.

The reporter also mentioned the disinformation and soft power threats, cybersecurity, countering terrorism and corruption etc.

After the report, the Committees resumed in camera, where the reporter answered the questions.