The Political Economy of Georgia's Rose Revolution

The Rose Revolution opened a new chapter in the history of modern Georgia. The post-revolution government achieved a number of successes in areas such as dramatically increasing state budget revenues, fighting corruption, and setting up effective cooperative relationships with the international financial institutions. But it made some mistakes, too, in building a democratic state in general and in its economic policy in particular. Its relationship with Russia and its excessive exposure to Russian investments is particularly troubling. The country's policies need to be fine-tuned in order to protect its democracy and promote further economic growth.