Avtandil Tskitishvili ( ka, ავთანდილ ცქიტიშვილი; 26 July 1950 – 9 December 2013) was a Georgian general who served as the Chief of General Staff of the

Georgian Armed Forces The Defence Forces of Georgia ( ka, საქართველოს თავდაცვის ძალები, tr), or Georgian Defence Forces (GDF), are the combined military forces of Georgia, tasked with the defense of the nation's indep ...

from January 1992 to December 1993. Tskitishvili was born in Marneuli in 1950. He graduated from the Tbilisi Artillery College in 1972 and the Leningrad Artillery Academy in 1980. He served in the army of the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

, rising to the rank of colonel in 1985. After the retirement from the Soviet military in 1991, he was instrumental in founding the

National Guard of Georgia The National Guard of Georgia (NG, ka, საქართველოს ეროვნული გვარდია, ''sak'art'velos erovnuli gvardia'') is a branch of the Defense Forces of Georgia. It is tasked with responding to external t ...

and took command of its 1st Brigade. In August 1991, he was appointed First Deputy Commander of the National Guard. He became Chief of General Staff of the Georgian military and First Deputy Defense Minister of Georgia after the overthrow of President

Zviad Gamsakhurdia Zviad Konstantines dze Gamsakhurdia ( ka, ზვიად გამსახურდია, tr; russian: Звиа́д Константи́нович Гамсаху́рдия, Zviad Konstantinovich Gamsakhurdiya; 31 March 1939 – 31 December 1 ...

in January 1992. He was promoted to the rank of major-general in August 1992. With Georgia descending into chaos of a

civil war A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government polici ...

and military collapse, Tskitishvili, with his

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...

n counterpart General Mikhail Kolesnikov signed in

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

, on 9 October 1993, a Russian-Georgian treaty, granting to Russia several key military bases and facilities in Georgia. In December 1993, Brigadier General Tskitishvili resigned as a reaction to the military setback in

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 ...

and he was succeeded by Major-General Guram Nikolaishvili. In 1996 he resumed military service, being promoted to the rank of major-general and appointed chief of staff of the border forces. In 2000, Tskitishvili retired and became actively involved in veteran organizations. He returned to state service once again in 2013 and was appointed adviser to the head of Department of Veteran Affairs of the General Staff of the Georgian Armed Forces. He was awarded the Order of Vakhtang Gorgasali, 3rd Rank, and other Georgian and foreign military decorations.

References

, - 1950 births 2013 deaths People from Marneuli Generals from Georgia (country) Generals of the Defense Forces of Georgia Soviet Army officers {{Georgia-bio-stub