Georgia will be allowed to leave CIS in one year

Georgia’s decision to leave the CIS, made after the Russian occupation of its territories, will be discussed at the next CIS summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, on October 10. CIS charter formalities will ensure that Georgia remains listed as a member for around one more year.

On August 11, 2008, President Saakashvili declared that Georgia had decided to withdraw from the CIS. A few days later the Georgian Parliament adopted a law to this effect and on August 18 the CIS Executive Committee received Georgia’s official note. But according to CIS byelaws, any such decision would need to be notified to the CIS one year in advance, meaning Georgia will officially leave the organization, as far as the CIS is concerned, on August 18, 2009.

Most probably, the Kremlin will again try to use the summit to consolidate CIS members against Georgia. The Georgian leadership is not planning to attend the summit, but it is interesting to imagine what might have happened if Saakashvili and Medvedev had met there.