With the declaration of Georgia’s independence from the Soviet Union and the outbreak of civil unrest (1991), Tevzadze joined the Kojori-headquartered paramilitary battalion “Orbi” (“hawk”) which he commanded from January 1992 to January 1993 and took part in the war with the secessionists in Abkhazia. After the merger of paramilitary units into the Georgian Armed Forces, Colonel Tevzadze became a commander of the 11th brigade of reconnaissance (1992–93) and then of the 1st brigade (1993–94). From May 1994 to August 1997, he headed a Foreign Relations Office at the Ministry of Defense of Georgia. From 1994 to 1996, he received training at various NATO education centers such as the NATO Defence College (Rome, Italy), George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies (Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany), and Command and General Staff College (Fort Leavenworth, United States).