On November 4, the Press Office of the Georgian government reported that Tamaz Bestaev was selected as the Head of the Administration for the Tskhinvali region. Bestaev took over for Dimitri Sanakoev, who had just left the position.

Bestaev has overseen the Health and Social Care Service of the Administration of Tskhinvali Region for the past 15 years.

Bestaev praised Irakli Garibashvili, the Prime Minister of Georgia, for putting his faith in him and assigning him to the position. He said, "We jointly carry out the duties entrusted to us [by the government]."

As previously reported by Caucasus Watch, according to FM Darchiashvili, his ministry spared no effort to keep the issue of the occupied regions on the international agenda while continuing the policy of strengthening the nation's sovereignty and territorial integration, pursuing de-occupation, and aiming to resolve the Russian-Georgian conflict peacefully. The Geneva International Discussions (GID) was mentioned as one of the forums for achieving this goal. He also underlined the significance of mobilizing international assistance in de-occupying the country and peacefully resolving the issues. In that regard, the Minister stated that the government's objective in these talks is to obtain tangible results and strengthen the process, which, in his opinion, will ensure that the August 2008 Ceasefire Agreement is put into effect and that the procedure for the dignified return of internally displaced people to their homes begins. Minister Darchiashvili stated that this implies the withdrawal of Russian armed forces from [separatist] Abkhazia and the [separatist] Tskhinvali region and the deployment of international security and human rights protection mechanisms on the ground, adding that Tbilisi will continue to provide those behind the occupation line with the advantages of advancements made on the European and Euro-Atlantic paths.