Georgia Armenia Azerbaijan map (China-foreign comparison)

Author: Zhou Min, Editor-in-Chief
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2002-04-01
Features:
Flag: On January 14, 2004, the Parliament of Georgia passed a law to cease using the original flag established in 1990, replacing it with a new flag featuring a white background with five red crosses.
Coat of Arms: Within a seven-pointed star is a circle depicting a white horse galloping over mountains. The rider is the heroic Giorgi, dressed in armor, holding a spear and a round shield, with a white scarf fluttering in the wind. Above the knight are five small eight-pointed stars, interspersed with the sun and moon.
Natural Geography: 69,700 square kilometers. Located in the central-western part of the Caucasus, connecting Europe and Asia, including the entire Black Sea coast of the Caucasus, the middle course of the Kura River, and the Aragvi Valley, a tributary of the Kura River. It borders the Black Sea to the west, Turkey to the southwest, Russia to the north, and Azerbaijan and the Republic of Armenia to the southeast. About two-thirds of the territory is mountainous and foothill regions, with lowlands accounting for only 13%. The northern part is dominated by the Greater Caucasus Mountains, the southern part by the Lesser Caucasus Mountains, and the middle section consists of intermontane lowlands, plains, and plateaus. The Greater Caucasus Mountains have many peaks exceeding 4,000 meters in elevation, with the highest peak in the country, Shkhara, reaching 5,068 meters. Major rivers include the Kura and Rioni. Lakes such as Paravani and Ritza are also present. The western region has a humid subtropical maritime climate, while the eastern region has a dry subtropical climate. Climate varies significantly with elevation: the zone between 490 and 610 meters has a subtropical climate, while higher elevations are cooler; above 2,000 meters, the climate is alpine, with no summer, and perpetual snow above 3,500 meters.
Administrative Division: Georgia is composed of the Autonomous Republic of Abkhazia, the Autonomous Republic of Adjara, the South Ossetian Autonomous State, two municipalities, and nine regions.
Capital: Tbilisi, the political, economic, cultural, and industrial center of Georgia, spreads in a terraced manner along both banks of the Kura River, serving as a strategic hub in the Caucasus.
Population: 5.4375 million (1998). Of which, 70.1% are Georgians, 8.1% Armenians, 6.3% Russians, and 5.7% Azeris. Most residents adhere to Eastern Orthodoxy, while a minority follow Protestantism and Islam. The official language is Georgian, and many residents are fluent in Russian. Georgian belongs to the Caucasian language family, the Iberian-Caucasian branch, with multiple dialects, typically divided into Eastern and Western Georgian.
Economy: Georgia is an industrial-agricultural country with scarce natural resources, primarily including coal, copper, polymetallic ores, and barite. It has abundant reserves of manganese ore and rich hydropower resources. Industrial production focuses on manganese ore, iron alloys, steel pipes, electric locomotives, heavy-duty trucks, metal cutting machine tools, and reinforced concrete, with manganese ore mining being particularly renowned. Light industry is famous for food processing, mainly producing canned goods and wine. Georgian wine is world-famous. Agriculture mainly includes tea cultivation, citrus, grape and fruit farming. Livestock and sericulture are also well-developed. Major cash crops include tobacco, sunflowers, soybeans, and sugar beets. However, grain production is low, insufficient to meet domestic demand. In recent years, Georgia has discovered abundant reserves of oil and natural gas in the western, eastern, and Black Sea regions. Since independence, Georgia has focused on establishing a free market economy and conducting economic reforms under the guidance and assistance of international organizations. Georgia has many renowned spa resorts and climatic health resorts, such as Gagra and Sukhum.
Foreign Policy: Advocates actively developing foreign relations based on principles of equality, mutual benefit, respect for sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity. Pursues a balanced foreign policy, maintaining close ties with the United States while adjusting relations with Russia; actively seeks integration with Europe; actively seeks economic aid; values friendly cooperation with CIS countries and neighboring nations, and actively participates in international cooperation.
Relationship with China: On December 27, 1991, China recognized Georgia's independence. On June 9, 1992, Georgia and China established diplomatic relations at the ambassadorial level.