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Funeral of Georgian ex-leader Shevardnadze to be held in Tbilisi on July 13

Shevardnadze, the second president of Georgia and the foreign minister of the Soviet Union between 1985 and 1990, passed away around noon on Monday in Tbilisi at the age of 86

Eduard Shevardnadze (archive) ITAR-TASS/M.Machavariani

Eduard Shevardnadze (archive)

© ITAR-TASS/M.Machavariani

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Georgian ex-president Eduard Shevardnadze dies at 86

TBILISI, July 07. /ITAR-TASS/. Former Georgian President Eduard Shevardnadze, who passed away earlier on Monday, will be put to rest on Sunday, July 13, in the Georgian capital of Tbilisi, but the exact place of the burial ceremony will be announced later, the press service of the late ex-president reported.

Shevardnadze, the second president of Georgia and the foreign minister of the Soviet Union between 1985 and 1990, passed away around noon on Monday in Tbilisi at the age of 86.

The press service said the date for Shevardnadze’s funeral was agreed upon by his family with members of the state commission on the organization of the burial ceremony.

The Russian Foreign Ministry expressed in its statement on Monday condolences over the death of Eduard Shevardnadze, calling him one of the central figures during the historical breakthrough events in the world in late 1980s.

“Former Foreign Minister of the Soviet Union Eduard Shevardnadze passed away on July 7 in Tbilisi at the age of 86,” the statement said. “Leading the Soviet foreign affairs establishment at the times of the watershed stage, Eduard Shevardnadze was directly involved in the public and historical events of global scale.”

Eduard Shavernadze was a straight forward person with a talent of keeping discussions with various people, ex-President of the Soviet Union Mikhail Gorbachev said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin also expressed his “deep condolences to friends and relatives as well as to all Georgian people” over death of Eduard Shevardnadze, Dmitry Peskov, a spokesman for the Russian leader, said on Monday.

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