“Anaklia is the clearest example of how one government can turn a country’s historic chance into a decade-long chronicle of lies. Georgian Dream no longer has the moral right to speak about Anaklia. For more than ten years, we have been watching the same spectacle: prime ministers change, economy ministers change, the project’s names, implementation models, and promises change. The only thing that does not change is the result: the Anaklia port still does not exist,” said one of the leaders of the Lelo party, Irakli Kupradze, as reported by Georgia’s First Channel.

According to Kupradze, Georgia’s current authorities lack strategic vision, international trust, and the ability to bring nationally significant projects to completion.

“In 2016, the authorities convinced us that the BOT model was the best solution. It was on this basis that the contract was signed, and the public was promised that Georgia would receive the project of the century. They said that the first ship would enter the port as early as 2020, and that the port, built with investors’ funds, would remain with the country — and that this was supposedly the best model.

Then the same government destroyed this project with its own hands. In 2022, a new prime minister and a new team at the Ministry of Economy were already saying that the solution was state participation with a 51% share and the search for a new partner.

In 2023, the same authorities presented a public-private partnership (PPP) model, began looking for a new international partner, and claimed that this path was the optimal one.

Today, however, the economy minister says that the solution is now a fourth model — the Landlord model.

One government, four different models, and one result — Anaklia brought to a halt. If each new model was the best, a simple question arises: why has the Anaklia port still not been built?

Today the minister made yet another statement. She said that the Anaklia port would be developed in partnership simultaneously with many states and companies. However, even today we heard only abstract statements — without any specifics. Moreover, this promise completely contradicts the authorities’ own previous statements.

In ten years, they were unable to retain even one strong international partner, and now they promise the public that they will simultaneously attract many states and companies. Where are these companies? Where are these partners?

In reality, it was they who scared off Western investors and partners, destroyed international trust, halted the project for many years, and then placed their bet on Chinese state-owned companies. However, even in this direction they failed to achieve a convincing and complete result for the country.

Such is the style of governance of Georgian Dream: after every failure — a new presentation; after every unfulfilled promise — a new model; after every setback — a new explanation.

The problem was never in the BOT, PPP, or Landlord models. All over the world there are successfully operating ports built under each of these models. The problem lies with a government that has no strategic vision, no international trust, and is incapable of bringing nationally significant projects to completion,” Irakli Kupradze said.

According to him, Anaklia is not just a port, but a matter of Georgia’s national security, as well as a project for the country’s European and Euro-Atlantic future. Kupradze believes that the port should be built with the joint participation of Georgia, Azerbaijan, and Armenia and become the gateway to the Caucasus for the whole world.

“For us, Anaklia has never been just a port. Anaklia is Georgia’s national security. Anaklia is Georgia’s economic independence. Anaklia is a project for the country’s European and Euro-Atlantic future.

That is why we, Strong Georgia — Lelo, have from the very beginning stated that the Anaklia port must be built with full transparency, with the participation of Western strategic partners, international financial institutions, and strong private investors.

Anaklia should become the main logistics hub of the Black Sea, one that will connect Georgia with Europe, strengthen the country’s security, attract investment, and create tens of thousands of jobs.

The port must be built with the joint participation of Georgia, Azerbaijan, and Armenia and become the gateway to the Caucasus for the whole world. This is the path to a strong Georgia, a real vision of peace, prosperity, and development.

Anaklia should become a place of partnership among the three countries, of pan-Caucasian peace, stability, and prosperity. History has repeatedly shown that lasting peace is strongest where countries are united by trade, infrastructure, investment, and shared economic success. When neighbors create prosperity together, the value of peace rises, and the cost of confrontation becomes significantly higher.

The time has come to change the government that has turned one of Georgia’s most important national projects into a symbol of unfulfilled promises, lost time, and missed opportunities,” Irakli Kupradze said.