In the Wake of September 11: Perspectives from the Republic of Georgia
Featured speaker: Ambassador Tedo Japaridze
Friday, |
Jordan Hall |
On November 30, 2001, the University of Virginia welcomed Tedo Japaridze, Georgian Ambassador to the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, for an afternoon of presentations and panel discussion. Ambassador Japaridze, a former National Security Adviser to President Eduard Shevardnadze, is a dedicated scholar and keen observer of Georgian, Russian and American politics. He spoke about Georgia's role in international relations and regional security, particularly after the events of September 11.
Located at the nexus of Europe and Asia, the Republic of Georgia was once an important part of the Great Silk Road, the trade route linking China and Central Asia with Europe. Independent from the Soviet Union since 1991, Georgia remains important geostrategically and is poised to be a principal outlet for bringing the oil and gas resources of the Caspian Sea to international markets.
This forum was sponsored and organized by the Center for the Study of Mind and Human Interaction (CSMHI), an interdisciplinary unit within UVa's School of Medicine that studies large-group psychology. Since 1998, teams of former diplomats and psychiatrists from CSMHI have traveled to Georgia to assist in psychosocial rehabilitation following the ethnic conflicts of the early 1990s.
The program began with background presentations, followed by Ambassador Japaridze's talk and a panel discussion. Invited panelists included:
§ David Soumbadze, Senior Counselor, Embassy of Georgia
§ William Quandt, UVa Vice Provost for International Affairs
§ Vamik Volkan, Director of CSMHI and Professor of Psychiatry
§ Allen Lynch, Department of Government and Foreign Affairs
§ Yuri Urbanovich, CSMHI International Scholar and Adjunct Professor, Department of Government and Foreign Affairs.