Access to David Gareji Monastery in Azerbaijan opened

Baku / 10.10.19 / Turan: "The churches of the David-Gareji complex will open for the Georgian clergy from tomorrow," Georgian Prime Minister Georgy Gaharia said at a government meeting on October 10, summing up his visit to Azerbaijan.

According to him, the question of David-Gareji was raised at a meeting with Ilham Aliyev.

"We could not get around such an important issue as the David Gareji monastery complex. We all remember that, unfortunately, there are certain sections of the border between Georgia and Azerbaijan that have not been established, this is our post-Soviet legacy, and this problem has not been resolved in 25 years.

The President of Azerbaijan said that we have a history and geography that connects us, and, of course, I can completely agree that geography and history do not share friends and partners, but rather connect.

It was on this basis and foundation that we had an absolutely open conversation about current problems, and as a result I can tell you that the churches of the David Gareji complex will open for the Georgian clergy from tomorrow, therefore, we must make serious progress in this direction," said George Gaharia.

"We all must understand that love of the motherland, patriotism do not mean pseudo-patriotic attacks and rash steps. We have repeatedly noted that this problem should be solved taking into account the national interests of the two countries, taking into account the interests of the historical heritage and the church. This is the most important component of our approach.

I would also like to say that we must exercise exceptional responsibility and caution in the context of every step, word, and everyone must understand that love of the homeland, patriotism do not mean pseudo-patriotic attacks and rash steps, "said George Gaharia.

* David-Gareji (Keshikchi Dag - Azerbaijan) is a medieval cave-type monastery complex on the border of Georgia and Azerbaijan.

Two of the 25 monastery buildings are located in Azerbaijan. The situation in this place worsened after visiting the monastery of the President of Georgia Salome Zurabishvili in early 2019 and her statement about the need to decide the fate of the monastery.

In response, Azerbaijan closed access to its territory. After that, a large group of Georgian citizens actually attacked the Azerbaijani border guards, violating the state border. This exacerbated the situation. A week ago, in this section, Azerbaijan opened a new border saver.-02B-