Eduard Shevardnadze
Soviet and Georgian politician, last Soviet foreign minister, and post-Soviet leader of Georgia.
Last updated
Robert D. Ward · via Wikipedia: Eduard Shevardnadze · Public domain
Eduard Shevardnadze was a Soviet and Georgian politician who served as the final Soviet minister of foreign affairs from 1985 to 1991.[1]
Key facts and history
He joined the Georgian Communist Party in 1948 at age twenty.[2] Shevardnadze was appointed First Secretary of the Georgian Communist Party in 1972, tasked with suppressing grey and black-market capitalism.[3] Under his rule, Georgia experienced rapid economic growth and did not suffer the stagnation seen in other Soviet republics.[4] In 1985, Mikhail Gorbachev appointed Shevardnadze as Minister of Foreign Affairs.[5]
Shevardnadze resigned as foreign minister in December 1990, warning that "dictatorship is coming"[6] Shevardnadze was made the Chairperson of the State Council of the Republic of Georgia in March 1992, and in November 1995, after the presidency was restored, he won the election with 70% of the vote.[7][6]
What the research sources say
The BBC account states that Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili said Shevardnadze "greatly contributed to the end of Cold War and the establishment of a new world order"[8] Alexander Rondeli, president of the Georgian Foundation for Strategic and International Studies, described Shevardnadze as "an outstanding politician" who played a very important role in improving relations with the West.[8] The Guardian obituary notes that Shevardnadze's decision to name him foreign minister came as a complete surprise both inside and outside the Soviet Union.[9] Shevardnadze told the Guardian in 1990 that "civilised person-to-person relations are above ideology or class or particular interests"[9]
The Guardian also reports that Shevardnadze caused consternation abroad when he resigned in December 1990, explaining his decision as an attempt to shock Gorbachev.[9]
References
- Wikipedia, "Eduard Shevardnadze" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Eduard Shevardnadze Biography, Georgian President, & Assassination Attempt Britannica", Encyclopedia Britannica (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Eduard Shevardnadze" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Ekedahl and Goodman 2001, p. 10.; Hough 1997, p. 178. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Eduard Shevardnadze" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Soviet Union: Southern Corruption", 3 December 1973 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Eduard Shevardnadze" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Ekedahl and Goodman 2001, p. 17. (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Eduard Shevardnadze" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Pick, "Eduard Shevardnadze obituary", The Guardian, 7 July 2014 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Eduard Shevardnadze" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Eduard Shevardnadze – obituary", The Daily Telegraph, 7 July 2014}}{{cbignore (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Eduard Shevardnadze" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Eduard Shevardnadze: Controversial legacy to Georgia", BBC, 8 July 2014; "Eduard Shevardnadze obituary", The Guardian, 7 July 2014 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- "Eduard Shevardnadze: Controversial legacy to Georgia", BBC, 8 July 2014. facts only, no text reused. bbc.com
- Pick, "Eduard Shevardnadze obituary", The Guardian, 7 July 2014. facts only, no text reused. theguardian.com
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Eduard Shevardnadze (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
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Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Eduard Shevardnadze (CC BY-SA 4.0).
- Word definitions: the Codexery glossary, each quoted from its Wikipedia article.
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