Lazika ( ka, ლაზიკა) is a proposed

planned city A planned community, planned city, planned town, or planned settlement is any community that was carefully planned from its inception and is typically constructed on previously undeveloped land. This contrasts with settlements that evolve ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

, on the country’s

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal mediterranean sea of the Atlantic Ocean lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bounded by Bulgaria, Georgia, Roma ...

littoral, named after the ancient kingdom of

Lazica Lazica ( ka, ეგრისი, ; lzz, ლაზიკა, ; grc-gre, Λαζική, ; fa, لازستان, ; hy, Եգեր, ) was the Latin name given to the territory of Colchis during the Roman/Byzantine period, from about the 1st centur ...

. Proposed in 2011 by the-then

President of Georgia President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Mikheil Saakashvili Mikheil Saakashvili ( ka, მიხეილ სააკაშვილი ; uk, Міхеіл Саакашвілі ; born 21 December 1967) is a Georgian and Ukrainian politician and jurist.

, it was to be built south to

Anaklia Anaklia () is a town and seaside resort in western Georgia. It is located in the Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti region, at the place where the Enguri River flows into the Black Sea, near the border with Abkhazia. History The earliest settlement on A ...

—a sea resort immediately south to breakaway

Abkhazia Abkhazia, ka, აფხაზეთი, tr, , xmf, აბჟუა, abzhua, or ( or ), officially the Republic of Abkhazia, is a partially recognised state in the South Caucasus, recognised by most countries as part of Georgia, which vi ...

—and north to Kulevi, a port north to

Poti Poti ( ka, ფოთი ; Mingrelian: ფუთი; Laz: ჶაში/Faşi or ფაში/Paşi) is a port city in Georgia, located on the eastern Black Sea coast in the region of Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti in the west of the country. Built near t ...

, Georgia's key Black Sea port city. The project was largely abandoned after the change of government in Georgia in 2012.

Proposed city

An intent to construct a new large settlement, with the potential to make the city into the country's second largest—after the capital of

Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), is the Capital city, capital and the List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia (country), Georgia, lying on the ...

—and a major economic hub of western Georgia, was unveiled by President Mikheil Saakashvili on December 4, 2011. The name "

Lazika The LAZIKA ( ka, ლაზიკა) is a proposed Georgian Infantry fighting vehicle, developed by the Scientific Technical Center STC Delta and funded by the Georgian military. One of its main characteristics is the relatively thick armor compa ...

" is a reference to the

Greco Greco may refer to: People * Greco (surname), a list of people with this surname * a masculine variant of Greca (given name), an Italian feminine given name * Greco Mafia clan, one of the most influential Mafia clans in Sicily and Calabria Wine ...

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

designation of this region, a part of ancient

Colchis In Greco-Roman geography, Colchis (; ) was an exonym for the Georgian polity of Egrisi ( ka, ეგრისი) located on the coast of the Black Sea, centered in present-day western Georgia (country), Georgia. Its population, the Colchians a ...

. According to Saakashvili, the construction would be launched in 2012 and the government of Georgia had already been in talks with several large investment groups in Asia and Europe. Several politicians and commentators have been skeptical of the project. Critics have also pointed out to the potential harm to the flora and fauna of the Kolkheti National Park, which lies adjacent to the area. The NDI-sponsored public opinion polls in 2012 showed support for the construction of the city. Lazika was intended to have a special legal status, with the

English law English law is the common law legal system of England and Wales, comprising mainly criminal law and civil law, each branch having its own courts and procedures. Principal elements of English law Although the common law has, historically, be ...

model for commercial transactions instead of a codified civil law established in Georgia. To this end, the

Parliament of Georgia The Parliament of Georgia ( ka, საქართველოს პარლამენტი, tr) is the supreme national legislature of Georgia. It is a unicameral parliament, currently consisting of 150 members; of these, 120 are proportio ...

passed, on June 29, 2012, a constitutional amendment that would allow the lawmakers to adopt a law concerning the future status of Lazika. On September 24, 2012, President Saakashvili inaugurated the first building, that of the city's administration, in the projected territory of Lazika and unveiled several other projects.

Abandoning the project

In October 2012, after the defeat of Saakashvili's party to the

Georgian Dream Georgian Dream – Democratic Georgia ( ka, ქართული ოცნება – დემოკრატიული საქართველო, ''Kartuli ocneba – Demok’rat’iuli Sakartvelo'') is a social democratic political ...

coalition in the

parliamentary election A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...

, the incoming Prime Minister

Bidzina Ivanishvili Bidzina Ivanishvili ( ka, ბიძინა ივანიშვილი, also known as Boris Grigoryevich Ivanishvili ; born 18 February 1956) is a Georgia (country), Georgian politician, billionaire businessman and philanthropist, who serv ...

said that construction of Lazika was not feasible. This was also confirmed by

Kakha Kaladze Kakhaber "Kakha" Kaladze ( ka, კახაბერ (კახა) კალაძე, ; born 27 February 1978) is a Georgian politician and former footballer who serves as the Mayor of Tbilisi since November 2017. A versatile player, he was c ...

, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources. The project has fallen silent since then, but the new government confirmed their intention to build the Anaklia port in the vicinity of the would-be city of Lazika.Adzinbaia, Zviad (July 17, 2014)
Lazika: Georgian Economic Breakthrough
. ''Georgia Today''.

References

{{Reflist Planned cities Cities and towns in Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti 2012 in Georgia (country) Proposed populated places

Proposed city

Abandoning the project

See also

References