A post-Soviet state under Russian threat: Explaining Georgia's alignment preferences

Since its independence Georgia, as a small state had many difficulties in securing its sovereignty and territorial integrity. Besides many other problems that observed in all post-Soviet states, the ethnic separatism in Abkhazia and South Ossetia and the manipulation of these conflicts by Russia ?the powerful neighbor, put the state in a very vulnerable situation. For that reason Georgia needed external states as allies to balance Russia and consolidate its independence against the former hegemonic power. However Georgia did not choose always to balance Russia and formed an alignment with Moscow, beginning in the end of 1993 that was based on security cooperation. In several years, the Georgian state shifted its alignment strategy to balance again and it became an ally of the US and the European States.This study aims at explaining alignment choices of Georgia that emerged as a response against the Russian threat. It uses Stephen Walt?s balance-of-threat theory and its critics to examine the real reasons for and consequences of the alliances that Georgia formed with the external states including Russia. It also examines the origins of the alignment between Georgia and NATO member states and gives an overview of the NATO-Georgia relations. The implications of the Russia-Georgia war of 2008 on this relations are also discussed.