Georgia's new prime minister says he will move quickly to expand the powers of the Cabinet, ratcheting up pressure on the ex-Soviet nation's beleaguered president. AP cited Bidzina Ivanishvili, whose coalition unseated President Mikhail Saakashvili's party in last month's parliamentary election, as saying that he will has move aggressively to assert his power in the country, which sits on a strategic oil pipeline carrying Caspian crude to the West. Under a constitutional reform due to take effect after Saakashvili steps down in October 2013, most presidential powers will be transferred to the prime minister. But Ivanishvili has moved to establish control without waiting for the formal transfer of authority. He told a news conference Thursday that his coalition controlling the parliament may move to speed up the constitutional reform. -- SPA
