Mateshvili, K: Environmental Liability and Privatization in

The creation of a favorable investment climate is vital for the post-Soviet countries, since it is the key issue for transition to market economies and sustainable development. Most countries in the region encourage foreign and/or local investors to make investments in state-owned enterprises as they can provide technical and managerial know-how and the capital needed for industrial restructuring. It emerges from various investigations, that environmental liability is among the most important issues investors are concerned about. Correspondingly, development of transparent and updated liability regime is essential. The study reviews characteristic features of the NIS in terms of privatization and legal approximation to the EU and discusses the current trend of the environmental liability in the European Community. The research aims to identify the major advantages and shortcomings of the environmental liability in Georgia and gives recommendations for harmonization of the key aspects of the regime with the EU.