Six years after losing land in a war with Russia, Georgians believe the struggle for Ukraine will decide their own fate, and hope NATO and the European Union will now speed up their integration into the Western fold.

Alone among the former Soviet republics of the Caucasus, Georgia is pursuing a pro-Western course and the nation feels a strong kinship with Ukrainians who toppled Russian-backed President Viktor Yanukovych last month.

This solidarity was clear when Georgians scored a rare victory over their former Russian masters, albeit on the sports field rather than the battlefield.