Russia will occupy Georgia if Ukraine loses the war, Georgian Legion Commander Mamulashvili says

Georgians' motivation to defend Ukraine

I have been at war for almost 30 years. Unfortunately, this is the norm for my generation. If I could have left myself a message back then, I would have written: ‘Keep fighting!’.

The right of every person is to be free. This is the most precious thing we have. In 2014, my heart told me to create the Georgian Legion.

Georgia had to go through the same path that Ukraine is going through now. The only people who helped us were Ukrainians.

I often spoke with my comrades to understand their motivation to join the Georgian Legion.

Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, the Georgian Legion has remained one of the largest foreign formations in Ukraine. Russia wants to break our spirit, and has opened more than 300 criminal cases against volunteers from Georgia.

Spies in the ranks of the Georgian Legion

The Russian Federation has penetrated the Georgian special services to such an extent that they send allegedly Georgian volunteers to Ukraine to pass on information to them. Unfortunately, these people are still on the territory of Ukraine.

And many of them are even in the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The information about the guys who are currently serving in the Georgian Legion was provided by them.

Since 2014, Russia has been spreading fakes about the Georgian Legion. They even made a film about the most popular fake — the alleged ‘shooting’ of Ukrainians by Georgians on the Maidan. The Russian FSB used three alleged Georgian citizens who say they did it allegedly on my orders.

Then Viktor Yanukovych spoke and said that the Georgian Legion was to blame for what started in Ukraine. He blamed specifically us. Also, former Prime Minister of Ukraine Mykola Azarov spoke more than once and said the same thing.

Russian society is governed only by fear

Unfortunately, Georgia is going through the stage of purgatory from the ‘Russian world’ once again. I thought it wouldn't happen again, but it did. Russian propaganda affects everyone.

The machine that Russia created has been around for centuries. If now it is Solovyov, then earlier it was Pushkin and Lermontov.

Russian propagandists promote the idea of the ‘Russian world’. Previously, artists depicted the conquest of the Caucasus in their paintings, and how the Caucasians greeted the Russians with open arms. Russian propaganda has only increased its influence, and now it is one of the most powerful in the world.

The Russian military machine physically embodies what the propaganda machine says. And this machine needs to be suppressed by sanctions. Therefore, first of all, we need to stop the physical force that drives all this.

Explosions in Russia can shake up Russian society and instil fear in it. This is the only thing that drives this society. They have to be afraid of killing other nations. Russians will not get up and go to the Maidan. They don't have the fervour to take any action.

Putin needs a part of Ukraine's history

Russia is a state without history. Putin needs a part of Ukrainian history to justify their existence, so they attacked Ukraine.

We learned to respond to this aggression very late. The international community did nothing when these events were unfolding in Georgia. One of the politicians in the European Parliament said that World War III began in Georgia in 2008. However, it started in 1992-1993.

It is very difficult for Western politicians to take active action. In my opinion, the era of decisive politicians is over. Reagan was one of the last politicians who made drastic decisions, and McCain was also one.

War began for me at the age of 14

I have been participating in war since I turned 14. I was physically ready, but I don't know if I was mentally ready. It was hard for me to realise that it was serious.

I realised it only when I was captured, not during the fighting itself. For a child, this is a difficult turning point. I matured much earlier than other teenagers.

Once, the Red Cross transferred me to an Abkhazian family, who treated me well, for a day or two. However, it was quite difficult in the prisoner of war camp.

I think I became more determined after captivity. And I wondered why Russia was constantly at war with us. After Abkhazia, I was preparing for war for a long time. I knew that our land was occupied, and sooner or later it would happen again.

Russians have learned to torture people better

The attitude of the Russian military to prisoners has not changed in 30 years. Only the methods of torture have become more sophisticated. They have learnt to torture people better than they did in 1993. Russia has not become a civilised country.

The Russians are still holding Ukrainian civilians and passing them off as prisoners of war. This is a repetition of what happened and is happening in Georgia. They are now kidnapping civilians and selling them back to their families.

Russians will continue to do this because they remain unpunished. Therefore, for Georgians, the war in Ukraine is crucial for the liberation of their country. So, until Russia is completely weakened, it will continue to do what it is doing.

A large, powerful military machine like the United States can respond to Russia. We are not talking about them entering the war, but at least supporting us. Do you see the delays in the supply of weapons? We have not learnt to draw conclusions from history. And this is the biggest problem today.

The government in Georgia is occupied by Russia

Russia has been able to invest huge amounts of money in the political direction of Georgia. Georgian collaborators, like former Prime Minister Ivanishvili, infiltrated Georgian politics with the promise that the government would lobby for Georgia's accession to NATO and the European Union.

In reality, we got a completely different picture. Georgia began to fall out of the Western mainstream and the mainstream of democracy in general. They deceived the people.

Now they are trying to bring Georgia back into the Russian sphere of influence with pro-Russian laws.

The current government says that Abkhazia and South Ossetia should be returned peacefully. Russia has never given anything back peacefully. Georgia must have a government that hears the voice of the people. Now we have a government that functions like a subdivision of the FSB of the Russian Federation.

Georgia's pro-Russian government destroyed our army, so the country is not ready for combat, but we are not afraid of a Russian scenario like in Ukraine. We went through this many times after the collapse of the Soviet Union — in the 1990s, 2004, 2006 and 2008.

We made this mistake, and the people are paying for it. There are massive demonstrations in Georgia right now because they are trying to pass the Russian foreign agent law.

This is the second time that the pro-Russian government of Georgia has faced opposition from the people. Georgians are always belligerent against everything Russian. I think they will not be able to pass this law.

Russians in Georgia work for the FSB

I see the impotence of the Russian people, who are unable to defend their independence [against the dictatorship]. I think that a huge number of Russians who have moved to Georgia are working for the security services. This has a negative impact on Georgia.

There are approximately 350,000 internally displaced people in Georgia from the regions occupied by Russia.

Unfortunately, the Georgian government is trying its best to suppress those people who are trying to resist the Russians.

Georgians have always treated Ukrainians well. And even more so now, when they know that the same thing is happening in Ukraine as it used to be in Georgia.

I think the likelihood of Russia invading Georgia in the near future is low. Because almost the entire government is pro-Russian. History shows that Russians like to physically occupy countries. So a lot depends on the war in Ukraine.

We are making it easier for the future generation by fighting Russia. They should appreciate the work that will be done for them.