University of Tokyo Hosts Keynote Address by Tinatin Khidasheli on Russia, China, and the Geopolitics of Georgia

Civic Idea is pleased to announce that our Chair, former Minister of Defence of Georgia Tinatin Khidasheli, will deliver the keynote address at a public symposium hosted by the Economic Security Intelligence Lab (ESIL) at the Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology (RCAST), The University of Tokyo.

Event Title: Frontlines of Influence: Russia, China, and the Hybrid Contest over Georgia

The symposium will examine the evolving geopolitical pressures on Georgia, including Russia’s role in democratic backsliding, China’s expanding economic leverage, and the broader hybrid tactics reshaping the strategic environment in the South Caucasus. Ms. Khidasheli will also discuss key infrastructure and connectivity debates – such as the Anaklia deep-sea port – and consider avenues for enhanced cooperation with partners, including Japan;

“In recent years, Georgia has stood at a geopolitical crossroads, caught between its aspirations for deeper integration with Europe and the expanding influence of authoritarian networks centered in Moscow and Beijing. Although a small country in the Caucasus, Georgia reflects many of the world’s most urgent strategic challenges: Russian elite capture encouraging democratic backsliding, China’s economic engagement creating new dependencies and opaque financial flows, and the rapid erosion of civic space that undermines civil society and opposition voices. 

The symposium will feature a keynote address by Tinatin Khidasheli, former Georgian Minister of Defence and current head of the Georgian think tank Civic Idea. She will outline the current domestic situation and Russia’s role in shaping political dynamics inside Georgia. Her remarks will also explore how Georgia has become a test site for hybrid warfare, with clear parallels to gray zone tactics in the South China Sea and around Taiwan. Ms. Khidasheli will discuss the promised investments from China in Georgia such as the strategically critical port of Anaklia that faces the Black Seas, the regional connectivity logic shaping the Caucasus, and the potential role that Japan can play in countering China’s rise in countries facing similar pressures. These issues are not limited to Georgia. Disinformation campaigns originating from authoritarian actors have had international consequences, including direct implications for Japan. 

As civic space has contracted within Georgia, Ms. Khidasheli has herself become a target of mass disinformation. One prominent example is an absurd television “documentary” that falsely portrayed her as a “Taiwanese agent” and even claimed that the Japanese government bribed her to carry out its agenda.”

Panel contributions will be provided by Dr. Aya Adachi (German Council on Foreign Relations) and Maya Sobchuk (ESIL, University of Tokyo). The discussion will be moderated by Akira Igata.